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STATE  NORMAL  SCHOOL 

LOS  ANGELES,  CALIFORNIA 


DEBATERS'  HANDBOOK  SERIES 


COMMISSION  PLAN  OF  MUNICIPAL 
GOVERNMENT 


DEBATERS' 
HANDBOOK  SERIES 


Direct  Primaries 

Commission  Plan  of  Municipal  Govern- 
ment   (2d  ed.  rev.  and  enl.) 

Capital  Punishment 

Initiative  and  Referendum 

Election  of  United  States  Senators 

Income  Tax 

Central  Bank  of  the  United  States 

Woman  Suffrage 

Enlargement  of  the  United  States  Navy 
(3d  ed.  rev.  and  enl.) 

Other  volumes  in  preparation 


Each  volume,  one  dollar  net 


/c^^ 


Debaters'   Handbook  Series 


SELECTED  ARTICLES 

,     ON  THE 

COMMISSION  PLAN 
OF  MUNICIPAL    GOVERNMENT 

Second  and  Enlarged  Edition 
^  33  i8 

COMPILED  BY 
E.  CLYDE   ROBBINS 


MINNEAPOLIS 

THE  H.  W.  WILSON  COMPANY 

1910 


V\  ^.~Pb 


EXPLANATORY  NOTE 


There  is  no  denying  the  increasing  interest  in  the  commis- 
sion form  of  city  government.  While  this  volume  was  originally 
prepared  for  the  use  of  debaters  and  students,  the  demand  for 
it  by  libraries  and  members  of  clubs  and  organizations  who  are 
everywhere  studying  this  question,  has  rendered  necessary  a 
new  edition  within  a  year. 

The  present  volume  contains  all  the  material  included  in  the 
first  edition,  and  has  been  brought  up  to  date  by  the  addition 
of  recent  articles  and  references.  All  articles  have  been  edited 
so  as  to  avoid  useless  repetition. 

The  general  arrangement  followed  in  the  first  edition  has 
been  preserved.  The  introduction  deals  briefly  with  the  general 
municipal  situation,  and  leads  up  to  the  commission  plan.  The 
general  discussion  consists  of  a  series  of  articles  explaining  the 
relationship  of  the  commission  plan  to  other  important  municipal 
problems.  Following  this,  are  the  affirmative  and  negative  dis- 
cussions, respectively.  A  page  of  data  concerning  the  commission 
plan,  compiled  especially  for  the  original  volume  and  brought 
up  to  date  in  this  edition,  will  be  found  of  value  to  the  student. 
There  is  also  a  brief  of  the  question;  and  a  bibliography,  so 
complete  as  to  include  all  important  material,  and  so  arranged  as 
to  let  the  investigator  know  at  once  the  value  of  each  reference. 
This  bibliography  has  been  enlarged  by  the  inclusion  of  a  number 
of  references  to  articles  published  since  the  appearance  of  the 
first  edition.  Libraries  that  do  not  contain  a  complete  file  of 
magazines,  pamphlets  and  late  municipal  books,  will  find  this 
volume  an  inexpensive  yet  practical  method  of  supplying  the  de- 
mand for  material  on  the  commission  question.  It  is  also  recom- 
mended to  legislators,  members  of  city  councils,  business  men,  in 
short,  to  all  who  are  interested  in  the  betterment  of  city  gov- 
ernment. 


CONTENTS 


Brief 


BiBLIOCRAPHV 

General  References   xv 

Affirmative   References    xviii 

Negative   References    xxiv 

1 ntroduction     i 

General  Discussion 

Rowe,  Prof.  L.  S.  Problems  in  Good  City  Government....       " 

Howe,  William  W.  Municipal  History  of  New  Orleans.... 

John  Hopkins 

University   Studies    in    Historical   and    Political    Science     13 

Robbins,  E.  Clyde.  State  Administration  and  the  Commis- 
sion  Plan    IS 

Munro,  William  Bennett.  Galveston  Plan  of  City  Govern- 
ment...  .National    Municipal   League,    Proceedings,    1907    26 

Shambaugh,  Benjamin  F.  Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Gov- 
ernment    Ameri- 
can Political  Science  Association,  Proceedings,  1907 38 

Affirmative  Discussion 

Berryhill,   James   A.      Commission   Government :    A   General 

Statement   43 

Sherman,  E.  R.     Commends  Commission  Plan 

Cedar  Rapids   Evening  Gazette    46 

Huston,  Charles  D.     Commission  Plan  in  Cedar  Rapids.... 

• Cedar   Rapids    Evening   Gazette    49 

Cost  of  Commission  Plan Cedar  Rapids  Republican    54 

Interest  in  the  Commission  Plan.. Cedar  Rapids  Republican     54 

Whitlock,  Brand.     Spread  of  the  Galveston  Plan Circle     56 

Cheesborough,    Edmund    R.     Galveston's    Commission    Plan 

Citizen's  Bulletin    (Cincinnati)     59 


viii  CONTENTS 

Des  Moines  Plan  a  Great  Success 

Citizen's   Bulletin    (Cincinnati)  62 

Commission  Government Citizen's    Bulletin    (Cincinnati)  63 

Bradford,   Ernest   S.     Commission   Plan:   What  it   Means.. 

Citizen's  Bulletin    (Cincinnati)  64 

Des   Moines   Plan:    Questions  and  Answers 

City  Hall    (Des   Moines)  69 

State  Experts  Like   Plan Daily  Capital    (Des   Moines)  72 

Cost  of  Des  Moines  Plan Des  Moines  Evening  Tribune  74 

Galveston   City  Election.  .Des   Moines   Register  and   Leader  78 

Plan  Not  at  Fault Des  Moines  Register  and  Leader  79 

Finty,  Tom.     Commission   Plan  in  Texas.  .Galveston   News  80 

Sampson,  Henry  E.     Des  Moines  Plan  

Midwestern    (Des   Moines)  87 

Commission    Plan Oskaloosa    (Iowa)    Daily   Herald  88 

National  View  of  the  Des  Moines  Plan 

Washington  (D.  C.)  Times  89 

Sampson,  Henry  E.     Year  under  the  Des  Moines  Plan 

Wealth  (Des  Moines)  97 

Negative  Discussion 

Chadwick,  Rear  Admiral  F.  E.  Newport  Charter 

American  Political  Science  Association,  Proceedings,  1906  101 

Herriott,  Prof.  F.  L     Defects  of  Commission  Plan 108 

Holly,  Charles  O.     Comments  on  the  "Proposed  Galveston- 

Des  Moines  Plan"  of  Government lii 

Holly,  Charles  O.  Defects  of  the  Des  Moines  Plan 119 

Starzinger,  Vincent.  City  not  a  Business  Corporation 126 

Starzinger,    Vincent.      Commission :    Not   a    Superior   Legis- 
lative Body 121 

Starzinger,  Vincent.     Superior  Legislation 122 

Some   Fundamental    Political    Principles   Applied  to   Munic- 
ipal Government Texas  Bulletin   (University  of)  123 

Webster,  Walter  A.  Commission  is  an  Oligarchy 126 

Webster,  Walter  A.  Government  by  Commission 130 

White,  Clinton  L.     Failure  of   Commission  Plan 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Times  133 

Palda,  J.  R.     Commission  Plan Cedar  Rapids  Republican  134 

Pie   for   Politicians Burlington  Evening  Gazette    (Iowa)  139 


CONTENTS  ix 

Municipal  Government  by  Commission 

City  Hall    (Des  Moines)   151 

Organized  Labor  Opposes  Commission   Plan 

Iowa    Unionist    (Des   Moines)   154 

Wise,  W.  W.  Des  Moines  Plan.  .Midwestern  (Des  Moines)  156 
City  Council  Needed  No  Less  than  a  Mayor 

Plain  Talk   (Des  Moines)     159 

Jordan,  W.  N.     Some  Facts  and  Figures 

Plain  Talk   (Des  Moines)   160 

Municipal  Reforms  Needed Plain  Talk   (Des  Moines)   169 

Dominant  Mayor  Essential  in  Good  City  Government 

Plain  Talk    (Des  Moines)   171 

Commission  System  and  Non-Partizan  Government 

Plain  Talk    (Des  Moines)   174 

Facts  Concerning  Commission   Plan   177 


BRIEF* 


Introduction 

I.  '-'Only  evils  arising  from  the  form  of  city  government  which 
separates  the  legislative   and   executive  powers   will  be 
considered. 
II.  "^hat  these  evils  are  recognized  is  shown  by  the  present 
tendency  toward  the  concentration  of  powers. 

III.  v/This   plan   has   generally    failed    where   the   concentration 

has  been  but  partial. 

A.  New    York    City    concentrated    executive    power    and 

retained  a  weak  council. 

B.  The  city  of  Boston  has  a  similar  plan. 

IV.  "^Naturally   both    of    these   cities   are   now   considering    the 

advisability  of  adopting  the   commission   form. 
V.     Numbers  of  other  cities  are  moving  in  the  same  direction 
and  many  have  adopted  the  plan. 

VI.  While  the  isolated  legislative  body  is  needed  in  state  and 

national   governments,   there    are   many   peculiar   condi- 
tions in  the  city  which  make  it  unessential. 

A.  The  city  is  not  a  sovereign  body. 

B.  The  work  is  largely  administrative. 

C.  The  territory  is  small. 

VII.  The  isolated  council  has   failed  in  city  government  since 
A.     In  practice  legislative  and  administrative  work  cannot 

be  separated. 
I.     In   some   cities   the   mayor   dominates   in   both  the 

administrative  and  legislative  work. 
2.     In  others  the  council  dominates  in  both. 
VIII.  This    tendency    to    concentrate    with    a    fixing    of    powers 
points    to    a    commission    form    of    government    as    the 
proper  form. 


di  BRIEF 

Brief  Proper — Affirmative 

I.     American  cities  should  adopt  a  commission  form  of  gov- 
ernment because  it   is  desirable   for 
\^.     It  fixes  responsibility  in  administration  for 

I.     Each    commissioner    is    held    responsible    for    the 
efficient  conduct  of  a  specific  department  of  city 
administration. 
\x6.     It  fixes  responsibility  in  legislation  for 

1.  The  legislative  body  is  small. 

2.  Each  legislator  is  intelligently  informed  as  to  the 

city's  needs. 
II.  V/fhe  commission  form  provides  a  most  efficient  legislative 
body  in  the  commission  council  for 
vA.     The   legislative   and   administrative   work   of  the   city 
are  properly  and  unalterably  connected. 

B.  The  councilmen  have  a  direct  and  technical  knowledge 

of  city  afifairs. 

C.  The  councilmen  represent  the  whole  city. 

III.     The  commission  form  provides  a  most  efficient  administra- 
tive body  for 

A.  It  secures  dispatch  in  business. 

B.  It  stimulates  civic  interest. 
C.     It  secures  economy. 

Brief  Proper — Xegative 

I.     American  cities  should  not  adopt  a  commission  form,  for 
it    does    not    provide    a    proper    correlation    of    depart- 
ments  for 
A.     Success  in  city  government  depends  upon  such  corre- 
lation, for 
I.     The  cabinet  form,  successful  in  Europe  and  Can- 
ada, provides  such  a  correlation. 

2.  The  mayor  and  council  form  have  succeeded  with 

such  a  correlation. 

3.  The   program  of  the   National    Municipal   League 

demands  such  a  correlation  for  a  prac'ical  city 
government. 


BRIEF  xiii 

II.     The  proper  remedy  for  existing  evils  lies  not  in  a  change 
of  form,  but  in  a  removal  of  causes,  for 
A;     A  removal  of  bad  social  and  economic  conditions  has 
secured  successful  city  government. 

B.  The   introduction   of  bad   social   and   economic   condi- 

tions has  secured  a  like  result. 

C.  Greater  local  self-government  has  been  a  strong  factor 

in  securing  similar  results. 
*A  detailed  brief  of  both  sides  of  the  question   with  para- 
graph  references   will   be   sent   to   any   one   upon    request.     Ad- 
dress,  Registrar,  State  University  of  Iowa.    (Debating  Bulletin, 
No.  206.) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


An  asterisk   (*)   preceding  a  reference  indicates  tliat  tlie  entire 
article  or  a   jiart   of  it   lias  been   reprinted   in   tliis  volume. 


General  Reeeke.xces  ' 
2.  3  ii  S* 

Biblingi'aphies 

Lytton,    Edward    C.    Des    Moines    Plan    of    Commission   Govern- 
ment.    Digest  and  References. 
Address   Des   Moines,   Iowa.     Can   be   obtained  upon   request. 

United   States.     Library  of   Congress — Division   of   Bibliography. 
List  of  References  Relating  to  City  Government  by  Commis- 
sion.    1909. 
Address  Washington,  D.   C.     Can  be  obtained  upon  request. 

Wisconsin   University.    University   Extension    Division.   Commis- 
sion Plan  of  City  Government.  Bulletin.  Serial  No.  259;  Gen- 
eral Series.  No.  141. 
Can  be  obtained  upon   request. 

Books,  Fai)iph!cts 

*American  Political  Science  Association,  Proceedings,  1907.  4 : 
189-92.  Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Government.  Pro'f.  Benja- 
min   F.    Shambaugh,    State    University    of    Iowa. 

Bryce,  James.  American  Commonwealth.  Vol  L  pp.  662-6. 

City   Commission    Charter   Act :   a    Representative   City   Govern- 
ment.  Published  by  the  City   Club  of  Topeka,  Kan. 
Can   be    obtained    upon    request. 

Commission  Plan :  Debates  between  Universities  of  Iowa  and 
Wis.,  and  Iowa  and  Minn,  with  a  brief  and  a  bibliography. 
$1.00.  Address  Forensic  League,  State  University  of  Iowa, 
Iowa  City,  la. 

This  is  a  very   fundamental  discussion   of  the  question.   Should 
.  be   given   to   debaters   after   they  have   acquired   a   good   knowledge 

of   the   issues.    Libraries  and   coaches   should   purchase. 


xvi  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Deming,  H.  E.  Government  of  American  Cities;  A  Program  of 
Democracy.  Galveston  Plan.  pp.  97-101,   123,  161.  G.   P.  Put- 
nam's Sons,  New  York.  '09. 
This    book    also    contains    a   reprint   of   the    municipal    program 

of  the  National   municipal   league. 

Des  Moines,  Charter  of. 

Address  City  Clerk,   Des  Moines.    Same  as   Iowa  Session   Law.s 
on  Commission  Plan. 

Des  Moines,  First  Annual  Report.  Mr.  31,  '09. 

Can  be  obtained  upon  request.  Address  City  Clerk,  Des  Moines. 

Galveston  :  Charter,  as  passed  by  the  28th  Legislature,  1903. 
Can  be   obtained   upon  request.   Apply  City  Clerk,   Galveston. 

Goodnow,  Frank  J.  City  Government  in  the  United  States. 
Boards  vs.  Commissioners,  pp.  191-203.  The  Century  Co.,  New- 
York.  '04. 

A  good  general  text  book  dealing  witli  all  phases  of  municipal 
government. 

Hamilton,   John   J.    Dethronement   of   the   City   Boss.   Funk   and 

Wagnalls  Co.,  New  York.  '10. 

A     stu'ly     of     commission     government     particularly     from     the 
affirmative    point   of  view. 

Houston  :   Charter,  as  passed  by  the  29th  Legislature,   1905. 

Can  be  obtained  upon  request.  Apply  City  Clerk  of  Houston. 
Iowa  Law  Providing  for  Municipal  Government,  etc.   Published 

by  Order  of  City  Council,  Cedar  Rapids,  la.  '08. 

Can  be  obtained   upon   request. 
*Johns   Hopkins   University   Studies   in   Historical  and   Political 

Science.  7 :  155-87.  Ap.  '89.  Municipal  History  of  New  Orleans. 

Wm.  W.  Howe. 
*National  Municipal  League,  Proceedings  of  the  Providence  Con- 
ference for  Good  City  Government,  1907.  Galveston  Plan  of 

City  Government.  William  Bennett  Munro.  pp.  142-55. 
*Robbins,   E.   Clyde.   State   Administration   and  the   Commission 

Plan. 
*Rowe,  L.   S.   Problems  of  City  Government.  Chap.  VIII.  Also 

Commission  Government,  pp.   198-307.  D.   Appleton  Co.,   New 

York.  '08. 

A  good  general  text  book  dealing  with  all  pliases  of  municipal 
government. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  xvii 

Magazines 

American  Political  Science  Review,  i  :  621-6.  Ag.  '07.  Dcs 
Moines  Plan  of  Municipal  Government.  Robert  Argyll  Camp- 
bell. 

Arena  32:  377-91.  O.  '04.  Democracy  and  Municipal  Government. 

•      B:  O.  Flower. 

Arena.    41  :  38-41.    Ja.    '09.    Better    City    Government.    L.    F.    C. 
Garvin. 
Recommended    for   purchase. 

Boston  Evening  Transcript.  Ap.  11,  '08.  Commission  Government 
in  Texas.  Albert  Bushnell  Hart. 

Citizens'  Bulletin.  4:1.  D.  '08.  Public  Utilities  Control  in  Wis- 
consin. Address  by  Dr.  B.  H.  Meyers. 
Delivered    before    meeting    of    National    Municipal    League    and 

j\merican  Civic  Association. 

City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:265-70.  Ja.  '09.  Des  Moines  Charter. 
Law    in   full   creating   Commission    Plan    in   Iowa. 

*City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:272.  Ja.  '09.  Questions  and  An- 
swers concerning  the  Des  Moines  Plan. 

City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:405.  Je.  '09.  Danger  of  Electing  the 
Wrong  Men.  Richard  C.  Dorby.  Answer  by  Commissioner 
MacVicar. 

Educational  Review.  37 :  362-74.  Ap.  '09.  City  Schools  under 
the  Commission  Plan  of  City  Government. 

Independent.  58 :  706-9.  Mr.  30,  '05.  City  Government.  G.  Smith. 

Independent.  62 :  1367.  Je.  6,  '07.  One  Man  City  Government. 

Municipality  (Madison,  Wis.).  S.  '09.  City  Government.  Com- 
missioner Ford  H.  MacGregor.  Address  before  League  of 
Wisconsin  Municipalities,  at  Monette,  Wis.  Jl.  21-23,  'o9- 

Political  Science  Quarterly.  15:  426-51,  675-709.  S.-D.  '00.  Coun- 
cil Government  versus  Mayor  Government.  E :  D.  Durand. 

Political  Science  Quarterly.  17:609-30.  D.  '02.  Referendum  and 
Initiative  in  City  Government.  John  R.  Commons. 

Political   Science   Quarterly.  21 :  434-46.   S.  '06.   Municipal  Codes 
in  the  Middle  West.  J.  A.  Fairlie. 
Recommended  for  purchase. 

Review  of  Reviews.  36 :  623-34.  N.  '07.  Spread  of  Galveston  Plan 
of  City  Government. 


xviii  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Affirmative  References 
Books,  Pamphlets 

*Berrj'hill,  James  G.  Commission  Government.  A  General  State- 
ment Prepared  for  the  Commercial  Club  of  Des  Moines. 

Berryhill,  James  G.  Des  IMoines  Plan  of  Municipal  Government. 
Read  before  Iowa  State  Bar  Association.  Jl.  9,  '08,  at  Wa- 
terloo, la. 

City    Government    by    Commission.    Report    of    a    Committee    of 
the  Commercial  Club  of  Peoria,  111.,  on  Commission  Govern- 
ment as  operated  in  Des  Moines. 
Can  be  obtained   upon  request.   Address   Secretary  of   Club. 

Dillon,  Sidney  J.  City  Government  by  Commission.  Address  be- 
fore Economic  Club  of   Boston.  Ja.  21,   '08. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.  Address   Secretary  of  Club. 

Eliot,  Charles  W.  City  Government  by  Commission.  Address  be- 
fore  Economic   Club   of   Boston.  Ja.   11,  '07. 
Can  be  obtained   upon  request.   Address   Secretary  of  Club. 

Fuller,  O.  M.  Municipal  Government  by  Commission.  Address  be- 
fore Chamber  of  Commerce  of  Erie,  Pa.  Ap.  15,  '09. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.  Address  Secretary  of  Chamber. 

Head,  James  I\I.  City  Government  by  Commission.  Address  be- 
fore   Economic    Club    of    Boston.   Ja.    11,    '07. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.   Address  Secretary  of  Club. 

Houston.  Annual  Report  of  Mayor   (Message)    and  Reports  of 
City  Officials  of  Houston,  for  years  1905-9. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.   Apply  City  Clerk,  Houston. 

Illinois.  Senate.  Commission  Government  of  Galveston,  Houston, 
and   Dallas.   Report   made   to   the    Senate   of   Illinois   by   the 
special  sub-committee  appointed  to  investigate. 
Can     be     obtained     upon     request.     Apply     Secretary    of     State, 

Springfield,   111. 

i\ational   Municipal  League,   Proceedings  of  Atlantic  City  Con- 
ference for  Good  City  Government,  1906.  pp.  181-93.  Success 
of  the  Galveston  Experiment.  E.  R.  Cheesborough. 
Libraries   are   recommended   to   purchase   this   report. 

♦National    Municipal    League,    Proceedings    of    the    Providence 
Conference  for  Good  City  Government,  1907.  pp.  142-55.  Gal- 
veston Plan  of  City  Government.  William  B.  Munro. 
Same  article  as  appears  in  Chautauquan.   51:   110-24.  Je.  '08.  Li- 
braries  are  recommended   to   purchase   this   report. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  xix 

National    Municipal    League,    Proceedings    of    Providence    Con- 
ference   for    Good    Citj'    Government,    1909.    pp.    156-65.    Des 
Moines  Plan  of  City  Government.  Silas  B.  Allen. 
Libraries   are   recommended   to   purcliase   this   report. 

Niday,  J.  R.  Business  Idea  in  Municipal  Government. 

Can   be    obtained   upon    request.    Apply   City   Clerk,    Houston. 

Rice,  W.  B.  City  Government  by  Commission.  Address  delivered 

at  Charlotte,  N.  C.  N.  '08. 

Can    be    obtained    upon    request.    Address    Mayor    W.    B.    Rice. 
Houston. 

Turner,    George   Kibbe.    City   Government   by   Commission.  'Ad- 
dress before  Economic  Club  of  Boston,  Ja.  11,  '07. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.   Address  Secretary  of  Club. 

Magazines 

Arena.  38:8-13.  Jl.  '07.  Galveston  and  Houston.  G.  W.  James. 

Arena.  38 :  144-9.  Ag.  '07.  Houston  and  its  City  Commission.  G. 
W.  James. 

Arena.  38:431-2.  O.  '07.  Unguarded  Commission  Government. 

Arena.  38:432-6.  O.  '07.  Des  Moines  Plan:  a  Model  of  Guarded 
City  Government. 

Broadway  Magazine.  17:547-52.  F.  '07.  Municipal  Government 
by  Commission. 

Jedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  O.  2,  '07.  Commission  Plan  Suc- 
cessful and  Ideal.  Raymond  of  Chicago  Tribune. 
Reprinted   from   Chicago   Tribune. 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  O.  31,  '07.  Commission  Plan. 
John  W.  Barry. 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  N.  21,  '07.  Two  Answers  to  Mr.. 
Palda  by  Attorney  A.  T.  Cooper  and  A.  H.  Wolf. 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  N.  26,  'qy.  Objections  to  the 
Commission    Plan    Answered.    Attorney    Henry    Rickel. 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  N.  29,  '07.  Commission  Plan : 
Once  IMore.  Veritas. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette,  Mr.  25,  '09.  Commends  Commis- 
sion Plan.  Address  by  Commissioner  E.  R.  Sherman  before 
the  Commercial  Club,  Sioux  Falls  (S.  D.),  Mr.  24,  '09. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.  Mr.  31,  '09.  Commission  Plan 
in  Cedar  Rapids.  Chas.  D.  Huston,  Address  of  Commissioner^ 


XX  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

before  Brotherhood  of  BurHiigton  (la.)  Presbyterian  Church, 
Mr.  30,  '09. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Republican.  N.  3,  '07.  Editorial :  Cost  of  Commis- 
sion Plan. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Republican.  N.  7,  '07.  Editorial :  Interest  in  the 
Commission  Flan. 

Century.  74:970.  O.  '07.  Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Government. 
H.  E.  Sampson. 

Chautauquan.  50 :  168-70.  Ap.  '08.  Municipal  Government  by 
Commission. 

*Chautauquan.  51:110-24.  Je.  '08.  Galveston  Plan.  William  Ben- 
nett Munro. 

Same  as  in  article  in  National  Municipal  League,  Proceedings 
of  Provirience  Conference  for  Good  City  Government,  1907.  pp. 
1-12-55.    Recommended  for  purchase. 

*Circle.    2:289-90.    N.    '07.    Spread    of    Galveston    Plan.    Brand 

Whitlock. 
^Citizens'    Bulletin    (Cincinnati).   6:1.    Ap.    18,    'c8.    Commission 

Plan.  E.  R.  Cheesborough. 

Same   article   in   Galveston   Daily   News.   Ap.    '08. 
Citizens'  Bulletin   (Cincinnati).  7:4.  Ap.  3,  '09.  Editorial:   Com- 
mission Government. 
^Citizens'    Bulletin    (Cincinnati).   ']:'].   Ap.    10,   '09.    Des    Moines 

Plan. 

Reprinted    from    Springfield    (Mass.)    Republican. 
^Citizens'    Bulletin    (Cincinnati),    "'."j.    ^ly.    8,    '09.    Commission 

Government. 

Reprinted   from   Springfield    (Mass.)    Republican. 
Citizens'    Bulletin    (Cincinnati).   7:    7.    Mj-.    15.   '09.    Des    Moines 

Plan. 

Reprinted    from   "^'orld's   Work. 
*Citizens'   BuUletin    (Cincinnati).   7:1-2.   Jl.   3,   '09.    Commission 

Plan :  What  it  Means.  Ernest  S.  Bradford. 

Reprinted   from   Municipal   Journal. 
City  Hall    (Des  Moines).   10:  252-7.  Ja.  '09.  ]\Iunicipal  Govern- 

men.  Commissioner  Chas.  D.  Huston  of  Cedar  Rapids. 

Reprinted  from  Bulletin  of  League  of  American  Municipalities, 
Des   Moines. 
City  Hall   (Des  Moines).  10:284-7.  F.  '09.  Commission  Plan  of 

City  Government. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  xxi 

City  Hall    (Des    Moines).   io:299-3CKi.  F.  '09.   New  Charter  for 

Jacksonville. 
City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:300.  F.  '09.  Commission  System  for 

Chicago.  R.  T.  Crane. 

Reprinted  from  open  letter  in  Chicago  Record  Herald. 
City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:300-301.  F.  '09.  Texas  Experiments. 

Shearon   Bonner. 

Reprinted  from   Nashville  American. 
City  Hall   (Des  Moines).  10:316-9.  Mr.  '09.  City  Government  l)y 

Commission.  Commissioner  John  MacVicar  of  Des  Moines. 
*City  Hall    (Des  Moines).  10:357-9.  Ap.  '09.  Des   Moines  Plan 

followed  by  Questions  and  Answers. 
*City  Hall   (Des  Moines).  10:376-8.  My.  '09.  National  View  of 

the  Des  Moines  Plan. 

Reprinted  from  Washington   (D.   C.)   Times. 
City  Hall   (Des  Moines).  12:99-100.  S.  '10.  City  Government  by 

Commission.  Mayor  Grant  Conrad  of  San  Diego,  California. 
City  Hall   (Des  Moines).   12:100-2.  S.  '10.  City  Government  by 

Commission.  Mr.  Powell,  Commissioner  of  Public  Works,  Ft. 

Worth,  Texas. 
City  Hall    (Des  Moines).   12:106-8.   S.  '10.   City  Government  by 

Commission.   Honorable  C.  L.  Davidson,   Mayor  of  Wichita, 

Kansas. 
*Daily   Capital    (Des   Moines).   Ag.    5,   '09.    State    Experts   Like 

Plan. 
*Des  Moines  Evening  Tribune.  Jl.  17,  '09.  Cost  of  Des  Moines 

Plan. 
*Des  Moines  Register  and  Leader.  Je.  i,  '09.  Editorial:  Galveston 

City  Election. 
*Des  Moines  Register  and  Leader.  Ag.  10,  '09.  Plan  not  at  Fault. 
Everybody's.    22 :  435-47.    Ap.    '10.    Sanity    and    Democracy    for 

American  Cities.  C.  E.  Russell. 
*Galveston  News.  Ap.  17,  '09.  Commission  Plan  in  Texas.  Tom 

Finty. 
Gunton's  Magazine.  27 :  559-70.  D.  '04.  Government  of  Municipal- 
ities by  Boards  of  Commissioners.  C.  Arthur  Williams. 
Independent.  56:1382.  Je.   16,  '04.  New  Galveston.  W.   B.  Slos- 

son. 


xxii  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Independent.  62 :  806-7.  Ap.  4,  '07.  Way  to  Decent  City  Govern- 
ment. 
Independent.    63 :  195-200.    Jl.    25,    '07.    Government   by    Commis- 
sion in   Texas.  W.   B.   Slosson. 
Recommended  for  purchase. 
Independent.  64:  1409-10.  Je.  18.  '08.  Three  Great  Experiments. 

Independent.  66:  194-5.  Ja.  28,  '09.  Example  of  Haverhill.  De 
Mont   Goodyear. 

Independent.  67:  I159.  N.  18.  '09.  Progress  of  Charter  Reform. 

Independent.  68:  415-6.  F.  24,  '10.  Experience  of  Haverhill.  D. 
Goodyear. 

La  Follette's  Weekly  Magazine,  i  :  7.  Mr.  2"],  '09.  Governing 
Cities  by  Commission.   Don.   E.   Mowry. 

McClure.  2"] :  610-20.  O.  '06.  Galveston :  a  Business  Corporation. 
G.  K.  Turner. 
RecommeiHled  for  purchase. 

McClure.  35:97-108.  My.  '10.  New  American  City  Government. 
G.  K.  Turner. 

Midland  Municipalities.  16:  77-83.  D.  '08.  Six  Months  of  City 
Government  by  Commission. 

*Midwestern  ( Des  Moines).  2>:2'^-2,'7.  Je.  '09.  Des  Moines  Plan. 
Affirmative :  Henry  E.  Sampson ;  Negative :  W.  W.  Wise. 

.Municipal  Journal  and  Engineer.  25:174-5.  Ag.  s,  '08.  Commis- 
sion Government  in  Houston.  "Difiference  Between  This  and 
Galveston  Plan."  E.  S.  Bradford. 

Nation.  83:322.  O.  18,  '06.  Municipal  Government  by  Commis- 
sion. W.  T.  Arnst. 

New  England  Magazine,  n.s.  70:393-7.  Je.  '09.  Municipal  Govern- 
ment. Charles  W.  Eliot. 
Recommended  for  purchase. 

*Oskaloosa  (la.)  Daily  Herald.  Ap.  6,  '09.  Editorial:  Commission 
Plan. 

Outlook.  82:  5.  Ja.  6,  '06.  Concentration  of  Power  in  the  Hands 
of  the  Mayor  at  Houston. 

Outlook.  83:54.  My.  12,  '06.  Experiments. 

Outlook.  85:834-5.  Ap.  13,  '07.  Texas  Idea. 

Outlook.  85 :  839-43.  Ap.  13,  '07.  Texas  Idea :  City  Government 
by  a  Board  of  Directors.  H.  J.  Haskell. 

Outlook.  86:  127-8.  My.  25,  '07.  Municipal  Efficiency. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  xxiii 

Outlook.  89:495-7.  Jl.  4,  '08.  Spread  of  the  Commission  Plan. 

Overland,  n.s.  50:324-80.  O.  '07.  Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Gov- 
ernment. S.  J.  Dillon. 

South  Atlantic  Quarterly.  8:174-83.  Ap.  '09.  Municipal  Govern- 
ment by  Commission.  C.  W.  Eliot. 

Speaker.  3 :  404-8.  S.  '08.  Commission  System  of  Government :  a 
Brief.  Dartmouth   College. 

Success  Magazine.   11:83-4.   F.  '08.   Something  New  in  Govern- 
ment. H.  S.  Cooper. 

Survey.  23:  502-4.  Ja.  8,  '10.  Government  by  Commission  in  Colo- 
rado Springs.  W.  D.  Foster. 

Technical  World.  12:621-8.  F.  '10.  Bringing  Dead  Cities  to  Life. 
F.  G.  Moorhead. 

*Washington   (D.  C.)  Times.  National  View  of  the  Des  Mo'nes 
Plan. 
Reprinted   in    City  Hall.    10:    376-8.    My.    '00. 

Wealth  (Des  Moines),  i  :  22-6.  Ja.  '09.  Digest  of  the  Des  Moines 
Plan. 

Wealth    (Des    Moines).    1:20-6.    F.    '09.    Des    Moines    Plan    of 
Municipal  Government.  James  G.  Berryhill. 

Wealth    (Des   Moines),   1:19-27.   Mr.  '09.   Des   Moines   Plan   of 
Municipal  Government.  James   G.  Berryhill. 

*Wealth    (Des    IMoines).    1:24-9;    1:12-5;    1:4-6.    My.-Jl.    '09. 
Year  under  the  Des  Moines  Plan.  Henry  E.  Sampson. 

World  To-Day.  7 :  1462.  N.  '04.  New  Galveston.  C.  Arthur  Wil- 
liams. 

World  To-Day.   11:943-6.   S.  '06.  Governing  Cities  by  Commis- 
sion. C.  Arthur  Williams. 

World  To-Day.  18:487-90.  My.  '10.  Breaking  Downward  Lines  in 
American  Cities.  C.   Dehoney. 

World's  Work.   14:9419-26.   O.   '07.   City   Government   by  Fewer 
Men.  C.  W.  Eliot. 
Recommended  for  purchas-e. 

World's    Work.    18:11533.    My.    '09.    Des    Moines    Plan   of    City 

Government. 
World's    Work.    18:11639.    Je.    '09.    Another    City    for   Commis- 
sion  Government. 


xxiv  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Negative  References 
Books,  Pamphlets 

*American  Political  Science  Association,  Proceedings,  1906.  3: 
58-66.  INewport  (R.  I.)  Charter.  Rear  Admiral  F.  E.  Chad- 
wick. 

Beale,  J.  H.,  Jr.  City  Government  by  Commission.  Address  be- 
fore Economic  Club  of  Boston,  Ja   21,  '08. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.   Address   Secretary  of  Club. 

Ivins,    William    M.    City   Government    by    Commission.    An    ad- 
dress  by   Chairman    of    Committee    on    the    Revised    Charter 
of  New  York  before  the   Economic  Club  of   Boston.  Ja.  21, 
'08. 
Can  be  obtained  upon  request.   Address  Secretary  of  Club. 

*Herriott,  F.  I.  Defects  of  Commission  Plan.  Delivered  before 
Prairie  Club,  Des  Moines,  Ja.  12,  '07. 

*Holly,  Charles  O.  Comments  on  the  "Proposed  Galveston-Des 
Moines  Plan"  of  Government.  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
Out   of   print. 

*Holly,  Charles  O.  Defects  of  the  Des  Moines  Plan. 

National  Municipal  League,  Proceedings  of  the  Providence  Con- 
ference  for   Good   City   Government,    1907.  pp.    166-77.   New- 
port Plan.  Rear  Admiral  Chadwick. 
Libraries   are   recommended   to  purcliase   this   report. 

National  Municipal  League,  Proceedings  of  Providence  Confer- 
ence for  Good  City  Government,  1907.  pp.  178-92.  How  Chica- 
go is  Winning  Good  Government.  George  C.  Sikes,  Secretary 
of  Municipal  Voters  League  of  Chicago. 
Libraries   are  recommended   to   purchase   this  report. 

Report  of  the  Sub-Committee  on  Plans  Other  Than  Commission 
Form,   As    Presented   to   Committee   of  49  to    Prepare   New 
City  Charter  for  Atlanta,  Georgia,  1910. 
Address    City    Clerk,    Atlanta,    Ga. 

*Starzinger,  Vincent.  City :  Not  a  Business  Corporation. 

*Starzinger,  Vincent.  Commission :  Not  a  Superior  Legislative 
Body. 

*Starzinger,   Vincent.   Superior  Legislation. 

*Texas,  Bulletin  of  the  University  of.  Je.   i,  '05.   Some  Funda- 
mental Political  Principles  applied  to  Municipal  Government. 
Samuel  Peterson. 
Out  of  print. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  xxv 

*Webster,  Walter  A.  Commission  is  an  Oligarchy. 
*Webster,  Walter  A.  Government  by  Commission. 
Webster,  Walter  A.  Problem  of  City  Government. 

Sent   on  application.    No.    6,    Beacon   St.,   Boston,   Mas.s. 

Magazines 

*Burlington  Evening  Gazette   (Iowa).  D.  20,  '09.  Pie  for  Politi- 
cians. 
Reprinted  from  Los  Angeles  Times. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Times.  D.  8,  '08.  Failure  of  Commission 

Plan.  Hon.  Clinton  L.  White  of  Sacramento,  Calif. 

*Cedar  Rapids  Republican.   O.  22,  '07.   Commission   Plan.  J.  R. 
Palda.  Written  to  the  Bohemian  Independent   Political  Club 
of  Cedar  Rapids. 
Out    of    print. 

*Chautauquan.  51 :  125-6.  Je.  '08.  Neu'port  Plan  of  City  Govern- 
ment. Rear  Admiral  F.  E.  Chadwick. 

*City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:  258-61.  Ja.  '09.  Municipal  Govern- 
ment by  Commission.  Discussion  by  Messrs.  Grosser,  Gemun- 
der,  and  Oliver. 

City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:  273-4.  J^-  '09-  Control  of  Municipal 
Public  Utilities  by  States.  Robert  O.  Brennan,  City  Solicitor 
of  Des  IMoines. 

City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:  408-13.  Je.  '09.  Experts  Discuss  Des 
Moines  Plan.  Debate  between  W.  W.  Wise  and  Commissioner 
MacVicar. 

City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  12:  102-6.  S.  '10.  City  Government  by 
Commission.  Honorable  D.  L.  Love,  Mayor  of  Lincoln,  Neb. 

*Iowa  Unionist  (Des  Moines).  Ap.  12,  '07.  Organized  Labor 
Opposes  Commission  Plan. 

Kansas  City  Post.  My.  25,  '08.  Defects  of  Commission  Govern- 
ment :  Open  Letter.  Judge  T.  Sims. 

♦Midwestern  (Des  Moines).  3:  35-6.  Je.  '09.  Des  Moines  Plan. 
W.  W.  Wise. 

Plain  Talk   (Des  Moines).  Chiefly  Assumption. 

*Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  Ja.  9,  '07.  City  Council  Needed  No 
Less  Than  a  Mayor.  Based  on  Prof.  F.  I.  Herriott's  Com- 
pilations. 

*Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  Ja.  16,  '07.  Some  Facts  and  Figure^. 
W.  N.  Jordan. 


xxvi  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

*Plain    Talk    (Des    Moines).    Ja.    19,    '07.    Municipal    Reforms 

Needed. 
*Plain  Talk   (Des   Moines).  Ja.  26,  '07.  Galveston  Plan  Hostile 

to  Business  Efficiency.  Prof.  F.  I.  Herriott. 

Same  as  address  before  Prairie  Club,  Des  Moines,  Ja.  26,  '07. 
*Plain  Talk    (Des   Moines).  F.  2,  '07.   Dominant   Mayor  Essen- 
tial in  Good  City  Government.  Based  on  Prof.  F.  I.  Herriott's 

Compilations. 
*Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  F.  16,  '07.  Commission  System  and 

Non-Partizan  Government.  Prof.  F.  I.  Herriott's  Compilations. 
Springfield  (Mass.)  Union.  D.  3,  '07.  Newport  Plan.  Rear  Admiral 

Chadwick.   Before  Economic  Club. 

An   asterisk    (*)    preceding  a   reference   indicates   that   the   entire 
■article  or  a  part  of  it  has   been  reprinted   in   this   volume. 


SELECTED  ARTICLES 

ON    THE    COMMISSION    PLAN    OF 

MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT 


INTRODUCTION 


Various  Forms  of  City  Government 

At  present  there  is  no  uniform  system  of  city  government 
in  the  United  States.  Not  only  do  the  cities  of  the  several 
commonwealths  have  different  forms,  but,  in  many  instances 
municipalities  within  the  same  state  operate  under  widely  vary- 
ing plans  of  organization.  Such  a  situation  has  made  the  ques- 
tion of  city  government  in  this  country  both  complex  and  difificult. 
Furthermore,  a  close  study  of  the  problem  shows  that  while  cer- 
tain cities  have,  under  a  given  form  of  organization,  been  suc- 
cessfully governed,  other  cities  of  appioximately  the  same  size, 
often  in  the  same  state  and  under  the  same  organization,  have 
become  notorious  examples  of  the  failure  of  the  plan.  Some- 
times the  breakdown  has  been  sudden,  like  the  collapse  of  a  great 
building.  At  other  times,  it  has  been  as  the  gradual  crumbling 
away  of  a  stone  wall,  until  the  whole  structure  was  undermined, 
and  the  machinery  of  government  rendered  ineffectual  and  use- 
less. 

The  fact  should  be  borne  in  mind  in  a  study  of  municipal 
government  that  the  several  forms  now  in  existence  are  the  re- 
sult of  historical  development.  They  are  the  outgrowth  of  our 
industrial  and  social  conditions.  Five  distinct  types  of  c|ty  gov- 
ernment have  been  evolved.  In  addition  there  are  many  modifi- 
cations of  these  forms. 


2  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

The  earliest  plan  was  the  council  system.  It  received  its 
name  from  the  fact  that  the  council  exercised  Jhe  important 
functions  of  government.  This  body  consisted  of  a  mayor,  a 
recorder,  the  aldermen,  and  the  councillors.  In  addition  to  be- 
ing members  of  the  council,  the  mayor,  the  recorder,  and  the 
aldermen  performd  judicial  and  police  functions.  The  sys- 
tem was  borrowed  from  England. 

Soon  after. the  adoption  of  the  federal  constitution,  however, 
American  cities  began  to  pattern  their  government  after  the 
plan  of  national  organization.  That  is,  city  functions  were  divid- 
ed into  three  classes:  the  executive,  the  legislative,  and  the  ju- 
dicial. This  system  became  known  as  the  federal  plan,  due,  of 
course,  to  its  close  analogy  to  the  divisions  of  the  federal  govern- 
ment.    The  form  soon  became,  and  stillis  in  g.eneral  use. 

Bx  the  middle  of  the.  .nine.teenth  century  certain  cities  insti- 
tuted..the  board  systexn.  Under  this  plan  important  functions, 
such  as  police,  fire,  public  health,  etc.,  were  delegated  to  boards 
or  commissions.  In  much  of  their  work  these  boards  acted  in- 
dependently of  the  city  council.  In  fact,  they  often  exercised 
quasi-legislative  power  in  addition  to  their  administrative  duties. 
Toward  the  close  of  the  century  another  form — the  mayor  sys- 
tem-^was  established.  This  plan  is  sometimes  called  the  one 
man  government,  because  all  power  is  vested  in  the  hands  of  the 
mayor.  He  is  held  responsible  for  the  conduct  of  municipal 
business. 

The  latest  type  of  organization  to  excite  wide  spread  interest 
is  the  commission  plan.  This  system  provides  that  the  control 
of  the  city  shall  be  vested  in  a  small  body  of  men  elected  at  large. 
These  men  are  known  as  commissioners.  They  devote  all  their 
time  to  city  affairs.  Individually  they  perform  work  of  admin- 
istration, while  collectively  they  pass  on  all  needed  legislation. 

Thus  it  is  seen  that  among  these  forms  are  found  extreme 
types  of  city  organization.  Oji.  the  one  hand  is  the  early  coun- 
cil system,  now  practically  extinct,  where  large  powers  and  re- 
sponsibilities rest  in  a  general  legislative  body.  At  the  other  ex- 
treme is  the  commission  plan,  in  which  the  same  group  of  men 
do  the  work  of  administration  and  legislation.  The  problem 
which   is  at  present  confronting  the   American  people  is   which 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  3 

of  the  various  forms,  if  any,  is  best  suited  to  the  average  Amer- 
ican municipality.  There  are  many  who  maintain  that  no  one 
form  will  prove  satisfactory  to  all  cities,  because  of  varying 
political,  social  and  economic  conditions. 

Functions   of   City   Government 

When  determining  the  form  of  organization  a  government 
should  have,  it  is  necessary  that  there  should  be  a  careful  consid- 
eration of  the  functions  which  that  government  has  to  perform. 
It  is  readily  seen  that  the  problems  with  which  city  officials  have 
to  deal  are  vastly  different  in  character  from  those  that  confront 
officers  of  the  state  and  nation. 

Our  federal  government  must  solve  such  political  and  eco- 
nomic questions  as  Inter-state  commerce,  the  tariff,  foreign  rela- 
tions, etc. — problems,  which,  by  their  very  nature,  require  extend- 
ed legislation,  administration,  and  adjudication.  State  govern- 
ment is  concerned  largely  with  matters  of  broad  policy,  such  as 
regulation  of  liquor  traffiic  within  the  commonwealth,  controlling 
state  commerce,  maintaining  state  institutions,  and  passing  mani- 
fold laws  of  a  general  character.  In  state  government,  as  in 
federal,  experience  has  proved  the  wisdom  of  retaining  a  form 
of  organization  in  which  the  legislative,  administrative,  and  ju- 
dicial departments  are  separated  one  from  the  other. 

Questions  which  arise  in  the  conduct  of  municipal  affairs, 
however,  do  not  always  require  the  checking  and  balancing  be- 
tween departments  so  essential  in  state  and  national  governments. 
Some  investigators  go  so  far  as  to  assert  that  such  checking  and 
balancing  does  not  operate  at  all  in  city  government.  For  exam- 
ple, it  is  not  found  in  the  judicial  department.  Municipal  courts 
do  not  question  the  validity  of  acts  of  the  city  council,  or  of  ad- 
ministrative officers.  They  confine  themselves  almost  wholly 
lo  hearing  infringements  of  municipal  ordinances.  This  is  due 
to  the  fact  that  city  courts  must  conform  their  rulings  to  the  dic- 
tum of  state  tribunals,  while  in  all  cases  of  importance  affecting 
life,  liberty,  or  property,  the  citizen  has  ample  recourse  from  the 
city  court  to  the  state  bench. 

One  duty  of  city  government  is  administration  of  state  laws. 
City  officials  are  compelled  by  the  state  legislature  to  enforce 
all  state  laws  within  the  city  limits. 


4  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

The  great  function,  however,  of  the  city  is  concerned  with 
caring  for  its  own  needs.  These  include  such  enterprises  as 
building  bridges,  paving  streets  and  constructing  sewers.  Well 
equipped  and  highly  organized  police  and  fire  departments  are 
maintained.  Public  health  must  be  protected ;  the  poor  and  sick 
given  relief.  A  multiplicity  of  duties  of  this  nature  devolves 
upon  the  city.  In  addition,  many  matters  of  deliberation  and 
policy  are  worked  out.  For  instance,  when  the  annual  budget 
of  the  city  of  Boston  is  compiled,  those  in  charge  must  bear  in 
mind  that  the  city  spends  annually  over  $40,000,000,  and  has  pay 
rolls  including  12,000  individuals.  Often  projects  are  undertaken 
which  cover  long  periods  of  time,  while  the  number  of  minor 
legislative  acts,  such  as  ordinances,  contracts,  etc.,  soon  reach 
into  the  thousands.  All  these  things,  and  many  more,  must  be 
performed  by  a  modern  municipality. 

Decay  of  the  Council 

A  matter  the  investigator  must  bear  in  mind  before  he  ar- 
rives at  a  conclusion  as  to  the  nature  of  the  proposition  before 
him  is  the  fact,  undeniable  and  indisputable,  that  within  the  last 
fifty  years  there  has  been  a  gradual  disintegration  of  the  city 
council  as  a  separate  legislative  organ  of  government.  As  re- 
grettable as  this  may  be,  it  has,  nevertheless,  actually  taken  place. 
This  decay  has  doubtless  been  due  to  a  number  of  causes,  such 
as:— interference  of  the  state  legislature  in  city  affairs,  the  con- 
fusing of  city  issues  with  state  and  national  politics,  the  attempt 
on  the  part  of  council  bodies  to  perform  administrative  functions, 
the  failure  of  citizens  to  elect  capable  men  to  office,  and  very 
often,  because  council  bodies  have  been  so  organized  as  to  be  en- 
tirely unsuited  to  meet  the  demands  of  a  twentieth  century  city. 

The  Issue 

The  issue  before  the  student  of  municipal  government  is 
clear.  It  is:  Are  the  duties  and  functions  of  city  government 
of  such  a  nature  as  to  require  a  form  of  organization  in  which 
the  legislative  and  administrative  departments  are  separate,  or 
can  the  work  be  better  performed  by  merging  the  legislative  and 
administrative  branches  into  one  body?     The  cities  of   England 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  5 

and  of  continental  Europe,  which  are  admittedly  superior  in 
government  to  those  in  America,  have  answered  this  question 
by  jealously  maintaining  their  separate  city  councils.  In  the 
United  States  adherents  of  a  separate  council  are  numbered  by 
the  thousands.  The  city  of  Newport,  Rhode  Island,  at  present 
conceded  to  be  one  of  the  best  governed  cities,  has  a  separate 
council  of  about  one  hundred  members.  This  body  performs 
the  legislative  and  deliberative  functions  of  government.  It  does 
not  administer. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  hundreds  of  American  municipaliiies 
conducted  according  to  the  prevailing  form — by  separate  legisla- 
tive and  administrative  departments — such  form  of  government 
has  fallen  into  disrepute.  It  has  been  impossible  to  locate  re- 
sponsibility either  in  legislation  or  administration.  Matters  of 
accounting,  expenditures,  enforcement  of  laws,  and  granting  of 
franchises  have  been  conducted  in  a  most  unbusinesslike,  often 
corrupt  manner.  To  these  cities  the  commission  plan,  which 
eliminates  entirely  the  separate  council,  which  fixes  individual 
responsibility,  which  is  simple  in  construction,  quick  and  effective 
in  operation,  and  essentially  businesslike  in  every  detail,  has 
come  as  a  welcome  relief. 

It  cannot  be  too  emphatically  stated  that  if  the  student  is  to 
get  a  clear  conception  of  the  issues  involved  in  the  commission 
problem  he  must  keep  his  point  of  view  so  broad  that  he  can 
see  in  just  what  ways  his  particular  issue  is  affected  by  other 
important  movements.  To  assist  in  doing  this  there  has  been 
included  in  this  book  a  section  called  general  discussion.  In 
this  division  the  reader  will  find  discussed  the  commission  plan 
as  it  is  related  to  other  vital  questions  of  the  day.  Its  connection 
with  the  "old"  form  of  city  organization  and  its  relation  with 
present  municipal  movements  are  considered.  Also  a  non-parti- 
zan  consideration  of  the  question  is  found  here.  It  is  advised 
that  the  articles  in  this  section  be  carefully  read  before  either 
the  affirmative  or  negative  material  is  perused. 


GENERAL  DISCUSSION 

Problems  in  Good  City  Government,  pp.   198-207. 
Prof.  L.  S.  Rowe. 

Our  inherited  ideas  of  democratic  government  have  dictated 
a  form  of  city  organization  in  which  the  local  representative 
assembly  or  city  council  occupies  an  important  position. 
The  same  political  traditions  dictate  that  the  higher  adminis- 
trative officials  of  the  city,  no  matter  what  their  functions, 
shall  be  chosen  by  popular  election.  It  is  a  significant  fact 
that  this  tenacious  adherence  to  what  we  regard  as  the  es- 
sentials of  democracy  has  been  contemporaneous  with  a  totally 
different  movement  in  other  branches  of  administrative  ac- 
tivity. The  management  of  great  business  enterprises  is  be- 
ing concentrated  in  the  executive  heads  of  industrial  corpora- 
tions. The  responsibility  for  the  conduct  of  affairs  of  edu- 
cational and  charitable  institutions  is  likewise  drifting  from 
the  board  to  the  single  executive  head.  Even  in  the  management 
of  the  affars  of  the  church  this  tendency  toward  the  con- 
centration of  executive  power  is  apparent.  Wherever  the 
form  of  board  management  is  still  preserved,  the  actual  con- 
trol and  responsibility  are  vested  in  one  individual,  whether  he 
be  called  the  president  of  the  board  or  the  chairman  of  the  ex- 
ecutive committee.  However  we  may  regard  this  tendency,  there 
is  every  indication  that  it  is  not  merely  a  passing  phase,  but 
that  the  immediate  future  will  witness  a  strengthening  of  its 
influence. 

Tendencies  so  clearly  marked  in  American  business  and  in- 
dustrial activity  are  certain  to  exert  an  influence  on  the  ad- 
ministration of  public  affairs.  We  cannot  hope  permanently  to 
preserve  the  illusion  that  political  organization  can  be  kept  from 
the  influences  which  are  dominant  in  every  department  of 
our  national  life. 


8  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

If  the  concentration  of  power  in  the  mayor  represents  a 
permanent  tendency  in  American  administrative  policy,  the 
question  immediately  presents  itself  whether  we  can  reconcile 
these  changes  with  our  views  of  democracy.  No  one  will  deny 
that  the  increase  of  executive  power  as  well  as  its  concentration 
has  been  accompanied  by  a  marked  increase  in  efficiency.  The 
choice  presented  to  our  American  communities,  therefore,  takes 
the  form  of  an  apparent  opposition  between  democracy  and  ef- 
ficiency. Thus  presented,  there  is  little  doubt  as  to  the  ultimate 
choice  of  the  American  people,  who,  above  all  other  people  of 
western  civilization,  are  worshipers  of  efficiency.  The  establish- 
ment, therefore,  of  a  harmonious  relation  between  democracy 
and  efficiency,  both  in  thought  and  in  action,  becomes  a  requisite 
for  the  maintenance  of  those  institutions  which  we  are  accustom- 
ed to  regard  as  the  distinctive  products  of  American  civilization. 

If  this  analysis  of  the  present  situation  be  correct,  the  out- 
look for  the  municipal  council  is  anything  but  encouraging. 
While  the  analogy  between  a  business  and  a  municipal  corpora- 
tion may  be  faulty  in  many  respects,  it  is  of  real  value  when 
viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  the  organization  of  city  depart- 
ments. Whether  or  not  we .  agree  with  this  analogy,  we 
cannot  disregard  the  fact  that  the  popular  view  with  reference 
to  the  administration  of  the  city's  executive  departments  is 
moving  toward  the  standards  which  have  proved  so  successful 
in  the  management  of  great  corporate  enterprises.  This  means 
that  the  people  are  prepared  to  accept  the  same  administrative 
standards  in  municipal  aftairs  as  those  which  prevail  in  the 
business  world.  The  recent  proposal  to  give  the  police  com- 
missioner of  New  York  a  term  of.  ten  years  or  possibly  a  life 
tenure,  would  have  been  received  with  scorn  and  indignation 
fifty  years  ago.  To-day  it  is  regarded  by  many  as  the  best 
means  of  securing  an  efficient  administration  of  this  service. 

Similarly,  the  increasing  limitation  of  the  powers  of  the 
municipal  council  is  not  due  to  any  decline  in  the  character  of  its 
membership,  but  rather  to  a  growing  appreciation  of  the  dif- 
ficulty of  enforcing  responsibility  against  a  large  assembly.  The 
repeated  failure  of  the  efiforts  to  enforce  such  responsibility 
is  accountable  for  the  steady  decline  of  popular  interest  in 
the  work  of  the  council. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  9 

It  is  significant  that  even  in  those  cities  in  which  years  of 
effort  have  finally  secured  an  improvement  in  the  character  of 
the  men  serving  in  the  local  legislative  body,  the  betterment  of 
the  administrative  service  is  in  no  sense  commensurate  with 
the  amount  of  effort  expended.  The  vital  interest  of  the  citizens 
lies  in  strengthening  the  administrative  sen^ice  rather  than  the 
legislative  body.  The  gradual  appreciation  of  this  fact  has  led 
to  the  transference  of  what  were  formerly  regarded  as  legis- 
lative functions  to  administrative  officers.  Although  the  move- 
ment is  by  no  means  uniform,  the  general  trend  of  institutional 
development  in  this  country  is  to  reduce  the  power  of  the 
council  to  a  control  over  finances,  and  by  means  of  constitutional 
and  statutory  limitations  to  set  definite  limits  even  to  this  con- 
trol. The  council  is  gradually  assuming  the  position  of  an  or- 
gan of  government  to  prevent  the  extravagant  or  unwise  ex- 
penditure of  public  funds.  It  is  thus  rapidly  becoming  a  nega- 
tive factor  in  our  municipal  system.  To  an  increasing  extent 
the  American  people  are  looking  to  the  executive  not  only  for 
the  execution,  but  also  for  the  planning  of  municipal  improve- 
ments. Even  the  freedom  of  discussion  in  the  council  is  being 
subjected  to  statutory  limitations  by  provisions  requiring  that  the 
vote  on  financial  and  franchise  questions  shall  be  delayed  be- 
yond a  certain  period. 

This  decline  in  the  power  of  the  council  involves  no  loss 
of  popular  control.  In  every  city  in  which  the  mayor  has  been 
given  independent  powers  of  appointment,  and  has  been  made 
the  real  head  of  the  administrative  organization  of  the  city,  the 
sensitiveness  of  the  government  to  public  opinion  has  been  con- 
siderably increased.  Rightly  viewed,  this  change  involves  pos- 
sibilities of  popular  control  which  we  have  hardly  begun  to 
realize.  Almost  every  city  in  the  country  offers  a  number  of 
instances  in  which  the  mayor,  when  supported  by  popular  opin- 
ion, has  been  able  to  withstand  the  combined  influence  of  the 
council  and  any  machine  organization  that  attempted  to  direct 
his  action. 

The  lessons  of  this  experience  have  left  their  impress  upon 
the  political  thought  of  the  American  people,  and  explain  the 
tendency  to  look  to  the  executive  rather  than  to  the  legislative 


10  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

authority  for  the  solution  of  difficulties.  Popular  control  over 
the  city  government  will  become  more  effective  as  public  opin- 
ion becomes  more  thoroughly  organized.  At  present  we  must 
depend  upon  a  great  number  of  voluntary  organizations,  rep- 
resenting different  elements  in  the  community,  but  which  can- 
not from  the  nature  of  the  case  represent  the  opinion  of  the 
community  as  a  whole. 

The  danger  involved  in  this  tendency  toward  concentration 
of  executive  power  is  that  the  council  will  be  divested  not  only 
of  its  administrative,  but  of  its  legislative  powers  as  well.  The 
desire  for  greater  administrative  efficiency  may  lead  us  to  a 
type  of  government  in  which  the  determination  of  executive  poli- 
cy will  be  left  exclusively  to  the  mayor  and  his  heads  of  de- 
partments. This  form  of  organization  is  certain  to  give  us  bet- 
ter government  than  does  our  present  large  and  unwieldy  coun- 
cil. The  accumulated  experience  of  American  cities  has  shown 
that  unless  the  council  is  reduced  to  a  single  chamber,  with  a 
small  membership,  responsibility  cannot  be  enforced.  The  choice 
that  presents  itself  is  clear  and  simple.  We  must  either  make 
the  council  a  small  body  of  nine  or  eleven  members,  elected  by 
the  people,  having  complete  power  over  the  finances  of  the  city, 
or  we  shall  inevitably  be  driven  to  a  system  in  which  the  coun- 
cil will  disappear,  and  all  power  will  be  lodged  in  the  mayor  and 
his  heads  of  departments. 

The  reconciliation  of  the  idea  of  popular  government  with 
the  concentration  of  executive  power  represents  the  first  step 
toward  a  better  adjustment  of  our  political  thinking  to  the  condi- 
tions of  city  life.  A  second  and  no  less  important  step  involves 
some  further  modifications  in  our  ideals  of  municipal  organiza- 
tion. American  cities  are  organized  as  if  they  were  the  small 
towns  and  villages  of  fifty  years  ago.  We  have  proceeded  on 
the  assumption  that  an  aggressive  and  progressive  municipal 
policy  can  be  developed  out  of  the  compromise  of  conflicting  dis- 
trict interests.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  our  present  plan  of  district 
representation  clogs  positive  action  and  prevents  the  systematic 
planning  and  economical  execution  of  great  public  improve- 
ments. 

Placing  the  mayor  as  a   check  upon  the  council   and  the 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  ii 

council  as  a  check  upon  the  mayor  has  served  to  strengthen 
that  most  baneful  of  political  superstitions — the  belief  in  a  self- 
acting  governmental  mechanism  which  will  carry  on  the  work 
of  government  without  the  need  of  watchfulness  and  alertness 
on  the  part  of  the  people.  For  every  evil,  no  matter  what  its 
nature,  we  recur  to  the  statute  book.  There  is  a  widespread 
belief  throughout  the  country  that  for  every  abuse  there  is  a 
legislative  remedy.  This  belief  in  the  moralizing  power  of  the 
law  is  one  of  the  most  insidious  as  well  as  one  of  the  most 
corrupting  influences  in  our  public  life.  It  leads  us  to  place 
unenforceable  laws  on  the  statute  books,  and  the  disregard  of 
these  laws  becomes  the  instrument  of  blackmail  and  bribery. 

The  same  political  superstition  pervades  the  organization 
of  our  city  government — ^to  construct  a  self-acting  mechanism 
which  will  secure  honesty  and  guarantee  efficient  administration. 
By  pitting  the  executive  against  the  legislative  authority,  by 
electing  one  official  to  exercise  control  over  another,  and  by 
making  official  terms  as  short  as  possible,  we  have  beguiled  our- 
selves with  the  illusion  that  it  is  possible  to  construct  a  mech- 
anism of  government  which  requires  the  attention  of  the  citizens 
only  at  stated  election  periods.  It  is  not  surprising  that  this 
search  for  a  self-acting  governmental  machine  has  proved  fruit- 
less, for  it  represents  an  attempt  to  relieve  ourselves  of  a  respon- 
sibility which  we  cannot  throw  ofif.  The  complexity  of  organiza- 
tion that  has  resulted  from  this  attempt  to  secure  efficiency  and 
honesty  through  statutes  rather  than  through  men  has  done 
more  to  retard  municipal  progress  than  any  other  influence. 

The  problem  presented  by  city  government  in  the  United 
States  is  not  merely  to  construct  a  well-balanced  mechanism  of 
government,  but  so  to  construct  that  government  that  it  will  re- 
quire the  alertness  and  watchfulness  of  the  people.  The  situation 
in  Philadelphia  is  an  instructive  instance  of  the  effect  of  so  or- 
ganizing the  government  as  to  leave  the  people  under  the  impres- 
sion that  officials  are  so  encompassed  with  statutory  limitations 
that  they  have  little  power  for  evil.  With  a  bicameral  council,  a 
mayor  whose  appointments  are  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  up- 
per branch  of  the  local  legislative  body,  and  such  important  serv- 
ices as  the  control  of  education  vested  in  a  board  appointed  by 


12  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

the  local  judiciary,  authority  is  split  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
people  believe  that  no  official  or  group  of  officials  enjoys  suffi- 
cient power  to  work  much  harm.  We  fail  to  appreciate  the  fact 
that  this  splitting  of  authority  means  that  harmony  can  be  se- 
cured only  by  gathering  these  loose  threads  in  the  hands  of  some 
person  or  group  of  persons,  who,  while  not  officially  recognized 
in  the  organization  of  government,  exercises  the  real  govern- 
mental power. 

The  foregoing  discussion  has  shown  that  industrial  and  so- 
cial organization  in  the  United  States  is  tending  toward  an  in- 
creasing concentration  of  executive  and  administrative  power, 
and  that  this  movement  has  been  accompanied  by  a  correspond- 
ing increase  in  efficiency.  In  the  government  of  our  municipal- 
ities the  fear  of  absolutism  has  led  us  to  offer  considerable  re- 
sistance to  a  plan  whose  value  is  no  longer  questioned  in  other 
departments  of  organized  effort.  The  half-hearted  recognition 
of  this  principle  has  led  to  a  series  of  makeshifts,  which  have 
failed  to  give  satisfactory  results. 

Instead  of  giving  the  mayor  complete  control  over  the  ad- 
ministrative work  of  the  city,  we  have,  in  most  cases,  hampered 
his  powers  of  appointment,  making  them  subject  to  the  ap- 
proval of  the  council.  The  unfortunate  compromises  which  this 
system  has  compelled  the  mayor  to  make  have  been  laid  at  the 
door  of  the  council,  and  have  served  further  to  weaken  faith  in 
local  representative  assemblies.  If  this  feeling  continues  to  in- 
crease in  intensity,  it  is  likely  to  carry  us  to  a  form  of  city  gov- 
ernment in  which  the  mayor  and  the  heads  of  executive  depart- 
ments will  exercise  not  only  the  administrative,  but  also  the  leg- 
islative functions  of  the  municipality. 

The  alternative  that  presents  itself  to  the  American  people  is 
clear  and  unmistakable.  If  we  wish  to  preserve  the  council,  we 
must  be  prepared  to  make  three  changes:  First,  to  deprive  it  of 
all  participation  in  the  appointment  of  executive  officials;  sec- 
ondly, to  transform  it  from  a  bicameral  organization  to  a  single 
chamber,  and  thirdly,  to  reduce  its  membership.  Unless  this  is 
done,  it  is  safe  to  predict  that  we  shall  gradually  move  toward 
a  system  in  which  both  executive  and  legislative  powers  will  be 
vested  in  the  mayor  and  the  heads  of  executive  departments. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  13 

It  is  important  for  those  who  are  interested  in  the  betterment 
of  city  government  to  realize  that  while  in  the  organization  of 
government  compromises  may  be  attempted,  the  actual  operation 
of  any  system  is  determined  by  deep  underlying  forces  over  which 
the  individual  has  little  control.  The  compromises  that  have  been 
dictated  by  our  unwillingness  to  accept  the  consequences  of  cer- 
tain fundamental  canons  of  political  organization  have  placed  our 
city  governments  at  the  mercy  of  a  small  group  of  men  who 
understand  these  principles  more  clearly  than  we,  and  who  are 
able  to  manipulate  this  organization  for  their  own  ends. 

The  traditional  fear  of  absolutism  need  not  deter  us  from 
making  the  mayor  the  real  executive  head  of  the  city  govern- 
ment. Correctly  interpreted,  this  plan  oflfers  possibilities  of 
popular  control  which  our  present  system  lacks.  At  all  events, 
it  is  well  for  us  to  understand  that  the  demand  for  efficiency, 
which  the  American  people  place  above  their  desire  for  demo- 
cratic rule,  will  inevitably  lead  to  this  concentration  of  execu- 
tive power.  The  real  alternative  is,  therefore,  whether  this  con- 
centration of  power  will  be  accompanied  by  the  destruction 
of  the  city  council,  or  whether  the  city  council  will  survive  as 
an  organ  of  government  restricted  to  purely  legislative  func- 
tions. 


Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in  Historical  and  Politi- 
cal Science.  7:  155-87.  April,  1889. 

Municipal  History  of  New  Orleans,  William  W.  Howe. 

The  year  1870  witnessed  an  experiment  in  municipal  govern- 
ment in  New  Orleans  which  deserves  special  mention.  The 
charter  enacted  in  that  year  by  the  legislature,  adopted  what 
was  generally  known  as  the  administrative  system.  The  limits 
of  the  city  were  considerably  enlarged  by  including  what  is  now 
known  as  the  sixth  district,  and  was  formerly  Jefferson  City, 
and  the  government  of  the  municipality  thus  established  was 
vested  in  a  Mayor  and  seven  Administrators:  namely,  one  of 
Finance,  one  of  Commerce,  one  of  Improvements,  one  of  Assess- 
ments, one  of  Public  Accounts,  and  one  of  Waterworks  and  Pub- 


14  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

lie  Buildings.  These  officials  in  the  first  place  possessed  adminis- 
trative and  executive  functions  corresponding  to  their  names; 
and  each  of  the  seven  was  accordingly  at  the  head  of  a  bureau 
or  department  created  for  him  by  the  statute  as  follows:  a  De- 
partment of  Finance,  which  was  the  city  treasury;  a  Department 
of  Commerce  which  had  general  superintendence  of  all  matters 
relating  to  markets,  railroads,  canals,  weights  and  measures,  the 
fire  department  and  manufactories;  a  Department  of  Assess- 
ment, with  general  superintendence  of  all  matters  of  taxation 
and  license;  a  Department  of  Improvements  charged  with  the 
construction,  cleansing  and  repair  of  streets,  sidewalks,  wharves, 
bridges  and  drains;  a  Department  of  Police  having  charge  of 
public  order,  houses  of  refuge  and  corrections,  and  the  lighting 
of  the  city;  a  Department  of  Public  Accounts  which  comprised 
all  the  duties  of  an  Auditor  and  Comptroller;  and,  finally,  a 
Department  of  Waterworks  and  Public  Buildings,  with  super- 
vision of  waterworks,  schoolhouses,  hospitals  and  asylums. 

But  in  the  second  place  it  was  provided  that  the  same  May- 
or and  Administrators  should  form  the  Council  and  in  a  col- 
lective capacity  should  have  extensive  legislative  power  for  lo- 
cal purposes.  In  this  capacity  it  resembles  the  Spanish  Cabildo. 
Such  a  Council  possessed  naturally  many  valuable  qualities.  Its 
members  were  elected  on  a  general  ticket  and  were  not  sup- 
posed to  represent  any  local  clique.  In  the  exercise  of  their 
administrative  duties  they  became  familiar  with  the  need  of 
their  respective  departments  and  could  advocate,  explain  or  de- 
fend on  the  floor  of  the  city  legislature  what  was  desired 
or  had  been  done  in  the  bureau.  A  small  and  compact  body, 
its  meetings  were  as  businesslike  as  those  of  a  bank  directory. 
Its  custom  was  to  assemble  in  the  Mayor's  parlor  generally  on 
the  day  before  the  regular  weekly  meeting;  and  sitting  in  com- 
mittee of  the  whole  to  discuss  with  the  citizens  who  chose  to 
attend,  such  subjects  of  public  interest  as  might  be  brought 
up.  Reporters  from  the  daily  press  were  present,  and  the 
journals  of  the  next  morning  gave  full  particulars  of  the  in- 
terchange of  ideas.  If  the  subject  seemed  very  important 
and  difficult,  leading  citizens  were  invited  by  letter  or  advertise- 
ment to  attend  and  give  their  views.    As  an  example  of  thorough 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  15 

discussion  it  may  be  mentioned  that  an  ordinance  in  relation 
to  sewerage  and  drainage  which  was  proposed  in  1881,  was  de- 
bated upwards  of  one  year,  and  a  hearing  given  to  every  friend 
or   opponent   who    desired   to    express   his   views. 

No  system  of  government  can  pretend  to  be  perfect;  and 
the  charter  of  1870  could  not  satisfy  every  one.  It  was 
claimed  that  the  Council  under  the  charter  was  too  small,  and 
could  be  too  easily  controlled  in  the  interests  of  private  or 
corporate  gain.  No  preponderant  evidence,  however,  of  this 
assertion  ever  appeared.  The  administrators  as  a  rule,  were 
citizens  prominent  either  in  business  or  politics,  and  as  such 
were  far  more  amenable  to  public  opinion  than  the  ordinary 
councilmen  of  the  average  American  city.  Their  methods 
were  essentially  businesslike  and  their  legislation  as  a  whole 
was  characterized  by  public  spirit  and  progress. 

It  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  the  administrative  system 
could  not  have  been  continued  longer  than  it  was,  but  after 
the  adoption  of  the  new  state  constitution  in  1879  a  powerful 
pressure  for  a  complete  charge  was  established  by  local  poli- 
ticians. The  legislature,  accordingly,  in  June,  1882,  adopted 
the   present   charter  of   New    Orleans. 

State  Administration   and   the   Commission   Plan. 

E.  Clyde  Robbins. 

A  great  political  upheaval  is  taking  place  in  city  govern- 
ment in  the  middle  west.  The  movement  is  not  a  sudden 
revolt  of  graft-burdened  citizens,  nor  is  it  the  result  of  ill- 
judged  municipal  agitation.  Rather  it  is  a  response  to  funda- 
mental changes  that  mark  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in 
the  industrial  and  political  life  of  cities  in  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley.  At  present,  however,  this  movement  is 
largely  in  the  hands  of  ambitious  reformers.  If  for  any 
reason  it  should  be  misguided,  the  consequences  may  be  dis- 
astrous, for  its  causes  are  powerful  and  permanent;  but  if 
properly  directed,  encouraging  prospects  for  municipal  im- 
provement   are    presented. 


i6  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

The  change  from  existing  conditions  is  taking  two  well 
defined  courses,  both  of  which  are  held  with  vigor  and  en- 
thusiasm. One  movement  is  toward  state  administrative 
control  over  cities.  At  present  each  commonwealth  exer- 
cises legislative  control  over  its  municipalities.  The  state 
legislature  sets  forth  in  detail  the  powers  and  functions  of 
city  government.  A  municipality  is  forbidden  to  use  any 
right  or  privilege  that  is  not  found  in  the  list  of  powers 
that  the  legislature  has  especially  granted.  Before  cities  may 
assume  a  new  function,  the  legislature  must  pass  an  act 
expressly    authorizing    it. 

Conditions  as  they  now  exist  are  admittedly  unsatisfac- 
tory. The  city  is  the  creature  of  the  state  legislature.  It  is 
subjected  to  all  the  whims  and  prejudices  of  a  law-making 
body  that  is  essentially  partisan.  This  partisanship  is  often 
manifest.  For  instance,  if  a  majority  in  the  state  legislature 
is  of  a  given  party  faith,  while  the  large  cities  of  the  state 
are  of  an  opposing  belief,  it  is  not  unusual  for  the  legislature 
to  pass  measures  harassing  these  municipalities.  Often,  too, 
there  is  rupture  between  representatives  from  city  precincts 
and  those  from  rural  districts.  The  result  is  that  measures 
pertaining  to  cities  receive  biased  and  improper  consideration. 
Under  legislative  control  the  enactment  of  new  measures, 
which  is  one  of  the  chief  functions  of  government,  does  not 
rest  with  the  city  but  with  the  state  legislature.  As  a  conse- 
quence, municipalities  find  themselves  unable  to  inaugurate 
needed  reforms  simply  because  they  do  not  possess  requisite 
governing    power. 

The  plan  of  state  administrative  control  is  something  very 
different  from  the  system  now  in  use.  Strangely  enough  at 
first  glance  the  scheme  appears  to  take  from  the  city  the  few 
powers  that  it  exercises.  It  is  nothing  less  than  an  attempt 
on  the  part  of  the  state  to  supervise  the  actual  operation  of 
important  municipal  activities.  The  list  of  things  that  the 
that  the  state  seeks  to  superintend  includes  the  lighting,  heat- 
ing, water  and  transportation  services  of  the  city.  Over  com- 
panies furnishing  these  facilities  the  commonwealth  would 
institute   a   strict   administrative   supervision. 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  17 

This  superintendence,  however,  is  not  exercised  by  the  legis- 
lature itself.  In  place  of  such  regulation  a  state  commission  is 
established,  which  has  supervision  over  the  public  utility  cor- 
porations of  the  various  cities  in  the  state.  In  many  respects 
the  body  is  similar  in  nature  to  boards  of  railway  commission- 
ers and  those  state  commissioners  that  everywhere  look  after 
hospitals,  asylums,  and  penal  institutions. 

The  other  change  that  is  taking  place  in  municipalities  of 
the  middle  west  is  the  growing  popularity  of  the  commission 
plan  of  city  government.  Under  such  a  method  the  work 
of  governing  the  city  is  turned  over  to  a  single  body  of  men. 
These  men  are  called  councilmen  or  commissioners.  They  arc 
paid  adequate  salaries,  and  give  their  whole  time  to  their 
offices.  It  is  their  sole  work  to  govern  the  city  upon  a  strictly 
non-partizan  business  basis.  In  some  places  provision  is  made 
whereby  commissioners  may  be  removed  from  office  before 
their  regular  terms  expire  if,  for  any  reason,  the  conduct  of 
municipal  business  is  disapproved  by  a  majority  of  voters. 

Neither  state  administrative  control  nor  the  commission 
plan  originated  in  the  middle  west.  Both  have  been  tried 
elsewhere.  It  is  doubtful  if  people  in  the  middle  west  are 
themselves  conscious  that  they  are  combining  in  one  experi- 
ment two  of  the  most  important  municipal  measures  of  the  present 
day.  Yet  this  is  being  done.  The  result  is  bound  to  be  inter- 
esting. It  may  also  be  extremely  fruitful,  for  no  one  will  deny 
that  the  two  great  defects  in  present  American  city  govern- 
ment are,  first,  in  the  relations  existing  between  the  state 
legislature  and  the  city  government,  and,  second,  in  the  actual 
governmental  machinery  of  the  city.  These  are  the  two 
deficiencies  that  the  plan  of  state  administrative  control  and 
the  commission  form  of  government  seek  to  correct. 

State  Administrative  Control 
If  the  plan  of  state  administrative  control  over  cities  were 
simply  to  become  an  additional  fixture  in  our  machinery  of 
government,  it  would  be  well  worth  studying.  But  it  presents 
greater  possibilities  than  that.  There  are  certan  things  about 
it  which  arouse  a  legitimate  hope  that  it  will  ultimately  super- 


i8  COMMISSION   PLAX   OF 

sede  the  present  defective  and  unsatisfactory  legislative  con- 
trol. If  it  should  do  this,  it  would  stand  as  one  of  the  most 
conspicuous  measures  in  American  municipal  history. 

As  has  been  suggested,  the  purpose  of  state  administrative 
control  is  to  give  the  commonwealth  supervision  over  public 
service  corporations — those  corporations  that  administer  to  the 
common  needs  of  the  people  of  the  city.  Such  regulation  is  in 
complete  harmony  with  our  present  municipal  advancement. 
For  years  it  has  been  recognized  that  some  of  the  most  malig- 
nant evils  in  city  government  are  those  connected  with  public 
service  corporations.  Gas,  electric  light  and  street  railway 
companies  and  the  corporations  that  furnish  water,  heat  and 
power  have  each  played  a  part  in  making  American  city  gov- 
ernment appear  inefficient  and  corrupt. 

Only  in  late  years  has  there  been  a  general  recognition  of 
this  fact.  The  reason  why  the  evil  was  not  ferreted  out  sooner 
is  not  difficult  to  explain.  Public  service  corporations  were  not 
an  act  of  special  creation.  They  have  matured  by  slow  evolu- 
tionary process;  they  have  grown  just  as  the  city  has  grown. 
Their  life  has  been  a  part  of  the  city's  life.  They  are  bone  of 
its  bone,  and  flesh  of  its  flesh.  If  they  had  come  into  being 
over  night,  the  next  morning  every  citizen  would  have  hailed 
their  presence  and  to  some  extent  at  least,  would  have  caught 
the  possibilities  of  their  power  for  good  and  evil.  But  so  un- 
observed was  the  oncoming  of  these  corporations  that  until 
comparatively  recent  times  they  developed  almost  undisturbed. 
From  the  very  beginning  they  sank  their  roots  deep  into 
municipal  life.  They  asked  for  and  received  long  leases  of  cor- 
porate existence.  Sometimes  the  franchises  granted  were 
perpetual.  In  other  cases  they  extended  over  periods  of  from 
thirty  to  sixty  and  eighty  years.  Too  often  the  franchises, 
themselves,  were  drawn  up  by  the  skillful  lawyers  of  the  public 
service  corporations. 

There  could  be  but  one  outcome  of  such  conditions.  Before 
long,  street  car  companies  possessed  unrestricted  right  to  lay 
their  rails  in  every  street,  to  cross  all  bridges,  and  even  to  regu- 
late their  own  fares.  Electric  light  and  gas  companies  put 
their  poles  and   piping  where  they  pleased,   while  water  com- 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  19 

panics  laid  along  public  thoroughfares  mains  that  the  average 
fire  engine  can  drink  dry.  The  citizens  made  no  complaint. 
Very  few  of  them  realized  the  importance  of  such  proceedings. 
The  majority  did  not  even  know  what  was  going  on. 

A  second  stage  in  the  development  of  public  service  cor- 
porations was  soon  reached.  With  the  marvelous  growth  of 
the  city  rival  companies  appeared.  The  shorter  termed  fran- 
chises began  to  expire,  and  the  city  councilmen  were  waking 
up  to  the  fact  that  corporate  franchises  possess  intrinsic  value 
just  the  same  as  the  best  commercial  paper.  The  period  that 
followed  was  a  time  of  spoils:  councilmen  sold  privileges  left 
and  right,  in  return  for  the  price  paid,  public  service  corpora- 
tions occupied  all  streets,  set  their  own  standards  of  service 
and  named  their  own  rates.  The  amount  of  money  which  citi- 
zens lost  during  this  era  of  exorbitant  charges  and  abominable 
service  can  never  be  accurately  estimated. 

Even  as  great  as  were  the  financial  losses,  the  political 
abuses  which  arose  were  most  stupendous.  Naturally,  as  the 
emoluments  of  municipal  offices,  especially  council  seats,  grew 
larger,  the  strife  for  such  positions  became  fiercer.  The  ward 
boss  was  soon  the  dominating  factor  in  city  politics.  He  could 
name  the  councilmen  from  his  district. 

Looking  back  into  that  period,  the  result  seems  natural. 
The  ward  boss  usually  had  a  definite  understanding  with  cor- 
poration promoters.  If  for  any  reason  the  city  council  was 
not  willing  to  grant  the  necessary  franchises,  it  was  not  a  great 
step  to  the  state  legislature.  The  growth  of  the  party  system 
in  America  made  the  state  law-making  body  the  next  logical 
unit  of  political  structure.  The  ward  boss  was  quick  to  carry  his 
appeals  to  this  higher  unit.  Thus  were  municipal  affairs  ruth- 
lessly mixed  with  state  and  even  with  national  politics.  On 
the  f^oor  of  the  legislature  there  were  always  those  willing  to 
protect  the  "vested  rights"  of  any  corporation.  Many  were 
there  who  voted  on  all  occasions  for  the  party's  sake.  Acts 
hostile  to  individual  cities  were  passed.  Special  leg- 
islation became  a  common  method  of  procedure.  This  is  not 
hard  to  understand  when  we  recollect  that  it  is  the  legislative 
body  that  sets  forth  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  city.  Thus 


20  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

if  a  certain  municipality  happened  to  be  uncompromisingly 
opposed  to  public  utility  companies,  it  was  not  difficult  for  the 
legislature  to  enact  a  special  measure  applying  to  that  particu- 
lar city,  and  regulating  terms  upon  which  the  municipality 
should  deal  with  the  corporations.  It  was  the  same  public 
service  evil  that  existed  in  the  preceding  era  of  the  municipal 
growth,  only  it  had  now  grown  more  complex. 

It  is  from  the  period  just  described — an  era  of  corporate 
and  boss  domination — that  the  American  people  are  just  emerg- 
ing. Especially  is  this  true  in  the  middle  west.  Only  now  are 
citizens  beginning  to  appreciate  what  it  means  to  have  public 
service  corporations  under  legitimate  control.  As  a  result,  re- 
formers are  searching  everywhere  for  methods  of  supervision. 
Every  kind  of  scheme  is  being  suggested,  but  it  has  remained 
for  the  state  administrative  board  to  offer  practical  and  feasible 
means. 

The  idea  of  controlling  public  utility  corporations  by  a  state 
administrative  commission  is  not  new.  In  1898  Massachusetts 
created  a  board  to  supervise  the  street  railways  of  the  common- 
wealth. Other  states  have  enacted  similar  measures,  some  pas- 
sively, others  aggressively.  The  power  of  the  commissions  has 
gradually  been  extended.  Wisconsin  reached  a  maximum 
point  of  expansion  in  1907,  when  it  created  a  board  that  has 
regulation  of  all  municipal  lighting,  heating,  power,  transporta- 
tion, and  telephone  companies.  Not  only  in  the  middle  west,  but 
all  over  the  country  these  commissions  are  being  created. 

In  organization  the  board  is  simple.  It  is  composed  of  a 
small  body  of  men  selected  with  reference  to  fitness  rather  than 
political  preferment.  Salaries  are  made  commensurate  with  the 
quality  of  work  demanded.  An  investigation  of  the  personnel 
of  commissions  that  have  already  been  created  shows  that  when 
care  is  exercised  in  appointments,  men  who  have  real  ability 
and  who  possess  a  broad  knowledge  of  city  affairs  can  be 
secured. 

Although  the  commission  is  simple  in  structure,  its  powers 
and  responsibilities  are  large.  It  strikes  right  at  the  heart  of 
the  public  utility  problem.  The  commission  asserts  its  author- 
ity   to    fix    the    valuation    of    the    physical    property    of    every 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  21 

municipal  lighting,  heating,  power,  transportation,  and  tele- 
phone company.  Methods  of  corporation  accounting  are  pre- 
scribed by  this  board,  and  to  it  the  various  corporations 
must  make  stipulated  financial  reports.  It  can  adjust  and  fix 
the  rates  that  companies  may  charge.  It  can  establish  and 
enforce  a  stringent  standard  of  service.  The  authority  of  the 
commission  is  subject  only  to  review  by  the  courts. 

It  is  seen  at  a  glance  what  a  great  factor  for  good  or  evil 
such  a  commission  is.  The  result  can  scarcely  be  over- 
estimated. If  persons  susceptible  to  corporate  influence 
should  be  placed  upon  the  board,  the  injury  would  be  enor- 
mous. If  it  is  dominated  by  men  who  have  the  real  welfare 
of  the  city  at  heart,  its  power  for  good  is  equally  great. 

There  are  definite  reasons  for  believing  that  these  state 
boards  will  be  honest  and  efficient.  Among  the  influences 
which  will  work  to  keep  the  commissioners  obedient  to  popu- 
lar will  is  the  power  of  publicity.  Under  a  state  commission 
all  dealings  with  corporations  are  between  the  companies 
and  the  commission  direct.  Hence,  if  a  politician  wishes 
to  ply  his  trade  in  the  interest  of  the  public  service  corpora- 
tion, he  will  have  to  do  so  in  the  open.  He  will  have  to  deal 
with  a  select  body  which  is  itself  always  in  the  lime-light. 
Hitherto,  t'he  politican  has  dealt  wth  a  questionable  city 
council,  or  an  indefinite,  intangible  state  legislature.  Under 
state  administrative  control  all  this  is  changed.  There  are  no 
partizan  promises  to  be  remembered,  no  party  pledges  to  be 
kept.  It  is  true  the  power  of  money  is  still  available  to  the 
corporation,  but  the  very  fact  that  the  commissioners  are 
continually  subject  to  public  scrutiny,  as  well  as  to  surveillance 
of  city  councils,  will  make  any  member  hesitate  a  long  time 
before  accepting  corporation  money. 

It  would  seem  that  under  the  proposed  plan  the  scheme 
of  secret  rate  making  is  doomed.  The  matter  is  put  on  a 
business  basis  with  adequate  publicity.  Corporations  are  com- 
pelled to  adopt  genuine  business  methods.  Their  books 
are  opened  to  a  reasonable  inspection  by  proper  public 
ofificials.  Their  rates,  their  service,  their  very  corporate  exis- 
tence are  dependent  upon  the  legitimacy  with  which  they  con- 


22  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

duct  their  afifairs.  Secret  rate  making  under  such  circum- 
stances is  nearly  impossible. 

Theoretically,  a  state  administrative  board  is  sound. 
Experience  has  already  shown  its  actual  operation  to  be  bene- 
ficial. Yet  there  is  in  the  middle  west  a  lively  opposition  to  it. 
This  antagonism  comes  from  an  unexpected  quarter,  that  is, 
from  the  cities  themselves. 

The  reason  why  cities  are  opposing  a  state  commission  is 
not  difficult  to  explain.  The  continual  struggle  for  more  local 
self-government,  and  the  battle  against  special  legislation  from 
which  the  city  is  just  emerging,  have  made  municipal  authori- 
ties suspicious  of  any  measure  which  the  state  legislature 
desires  to  enact.  To  many  the  creation  of  a  state  administra- 
tive board  appears  but  a  further  development  by  the  legisla- 
ture of  a  well  defined  system  of  political  patronage.  It  will 
furnish  a  few  more  offices  for  ward  bosses  and  meddling 
politicians,  and  that  is  all.  But  what  seems  to  opponents  of 
the  idea  infinitely  worse  than  political  jobbery  is  that  the 
scheme  would  deprive  the  city  of  what  little  self-government 
it  already  possesses.  The  municipality  would  be  bound  hand 
and  foot  to  the  state  legislature. 

With  all  due  regard  for  the  sincerity  with  which  cities  are 
resisting  the  supposed  encroachment  of  the  state  administrative 
commission,  it  must  be  admitted  that  their  view  is  short  sighted. 
They  are  not  considering  the  sentiment  of  the  whole  state  as  it 
actually  exists.  State  commissions  are  not  being  established 
to  furnish  political  offices,  or  to  deprive  the  city  of  its  powers, 
but  because  there  is  a  state-wide  belief  that  municipal  conditions 
must  be  improved.  Bitter  experience  has  led  the  public  to  be 
skeptical  and  cynical  in  regard  to  municipal  service.  There  is 
but  one  course  for  cities  to  pursue.  Instead  of  asking  for  in- 
creased powers  of  government,  municipalities  should  first 
remove  the  general  impression  of  mismanagement  and  graft. 
The  state  commission  offers  a  way  to  do  this,  and  if  it  is 
accomplished,  the  public  will  be  far  more  likely  to  listen 
to  the  request  for  additional  self-government.  People  wish 
to  be  assured  that  city  affairs  are  managed  honestly;  that  the 
citizens,    and    not    public    service    companies,    are    reaping    the 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  23 

"benefits  of  its  laws.  When  convinced  that  cities  are  ably  con- 
•ducted,  voters  will  not  long  withhold  from  municipalities  the 
additional  powers  that  they  are  to-day  seeking.  It  is  popular 
sentiment  which  regards  the  city  as  inefficient  and  corrupt  that 
is  tying  the  municipality  hand  and  foot,  and  not  the  state 
legislature. 

The  city  should  awake  to  this  situation.  It  should  not 
-Strike  blindly  at  such  measures  as  a  state  administrative  com- 
mission simply  because  on  the  surface  there  are  indications 
that  such  a  body  might  usurp  municipal  powers.  The  state 
Tjoard  offers  a  sensible  solution  for  present  difficulties.  It 
promises  to  put  the  public  service  corporation  on  a  sound  busi- 
ness footing.  This  would  be  a  decided  step  forward.  The 
problem  of  city  government  would  be  immeasurably  simplified, 
and  new  ways  would  be  opened  for  municipal  improvement. 

City  Commission 

The  second  innovation  in  the  middle  west  is  the  commis- 
sion plan  of  city  government.  This  plan,  which  was  first  put 
into  operation  at  Galveston,  Texas,  after  the  storm  of  1900,  is 
spreading  with  remarkable  rapidity.  No  other  form  in 
American  municipal  development  has  grown  so  rapidly. 
Although  it  is  being  adopted  by  both  Pacific  and  Atlantic 
cities,  it  is  in  the  Mississippi  valley  that  the  new  form 
is  meeting  with  most  favor  and  is  being  tried  in  the  greatest 
variety  of  ways. 

The  underlying  principles  of  the  new  idea  are  easy  to  under- 
stand. Provision  is  made  for  the  election  of  a  comparatively 
small  body  of  men,  called  commissioners.  Up  to  the  present 
time  the  number  'has  not  exceeded  five,  although  proposed  plans 
which  some  of  the  larger  cities  are  considering  provide  for 
more  governing  officials.  The  main  object,  however,  is  that 
the  number  of  commissioners  shall  be  so  small  that  citizens  can 
center  individual  responsibility  both  in  case  of  meritorious  work 
and  of  incompetency. 

Candidates  for  the  office  of  commissioner  are  nominated 
at  a  non-partizan  primary  by  direct  ballot.  There  are  no 
preceding  caucuses,  and  no  party  lines  of  any  kind.  There  is  no 


24  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

election  from  wards.  In  place  of  these  is  the  primary  vote- 
Any  citizen  who  files  a  petition  with  a  stipulated  number  of 
signatures — usually  a  small  number — may  have  his  name  printed 
on  the  primary  ballot.  The  results  of  this  vote  are  tabulated, 
and  candidates  to  be  voted  upon  at  the  regular  election  chosen. 
Thus  if  five  commissioners  are  to  be  selected,  the  ten  names 
receiving  the  highest  number  of  votes  at  the  primary  are 
placed  upon  the  regular  election  ballot. 

One  of  the  five  commissioners  is  called  the  mayor.  Some- 
times he  is  elected  separately  from  the  other  commissioners, 
although  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner.  It  is  the 
business  of  the  mayor  to  preside  over  meetings  of  the  commis- 
sion in  much  the  same  way  as  do  executives  of  our  city  councils. 
He  may  or  may  not  have  veto  power. 

There  are  fundamental  differences,  however,  between 
the  commission  form  and  the  ordinary  mayor  and  council 
system.  The  commissioners  devote  their  entire  time  to  govern- 
ing the  city.  They  make  it  their  business.  They  meet  in  daily 
sessions.  They  receive  annual  salaries  ranging  from  $1,500  to 
$3,000  in  cities  where  the  mayor  and  councilmen  formerly 
received  but  one  or  two  hundred  dollars.  Another  differen- 
tiating feature  is  in  administration.  If  there  are  five  commis- 
sioners, the  work  of  administration  is  divided  into  five  depart- 
ments. These  departments  are  arranged  to  suit,  the  particular 
needs  of  individual  cities,  but  generally  include  such  divisions 
as  a  Department  of  Public  Safety,  which  embraces  the  police 
and  fire  organizations,  a  Department  of  Finance,  a  Department 
of  Streets  and  Alleys,  a  Department  of  Public  Health,  and  a 
Department  of  Parks  and  Public  Improvements.  If  the  city 
is  a  seaport,  there  is  usually  a  Department  of  Docks  and 
Wharfs.  At  the  head  of  each  department  one  of  the  commis- 
sioners is  placed.  He  has  full  charge  of  the  department  and 
is  held  personally  accountable  for  the  conduct  of  it.  Such  a 
method  secures  individual  responsibility.  If  there  is  anything 
wrong  in  a  given  department,  citizens  can  go  to  the  commis- 
sioner in  charge  and  ascertain  the  cause.  On  the  other  hand, 
if  a  department  is  managed  with  efificiency  and  integrity,  citizens 
likewise    know    upon    whom    to    bestow    credit.     Even    though 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  25, 

one  of  his  subordinates  be  at  fault,  the  commissioner  cannot 
shift  responsibiUty;  it  is  his  business  to  see  that  those  under 
him  perform  their  services  honestly  and  intelligently. 

Such,  in  brief,  is  the  plan  of  the  administration.  In  some 
municipalities  the  central  features  have  already  been  supple- 
mented by  additional  measures.  For  instance,  uniform  account- 
ing in  the  various  departments  is  generally  insisted  upon.  In 
other  cities,  commissioners  must  publish  a  monthly  detailed 
statement  of  the  condition  of  each  department  and  of  the  city  as  a 
whole.  These  statements  are  issued  in  pamphlet  form  and  are 
given  to  any  citizen  free  of  charge. 

Another  radical  difference  between  the  mayor  and  council 
system  and  the  commission  form  is  in  legislation.  Up  to  a  com- 
paratively recent  time,  it  was  accepted  as  axiomatic  even 
in  city  government,  that  those  who  do  the  administering  should 
not  do  the  legislating.  In  fact,  the  line  of  cleavage  has  always 
been  between  the  legislative  and  administrative  departments. 
The  commission  form  upsets  this  idea.  It  turns  matters  of  ad- 
ministration and  legislation  over  to  one  body  of  men — the  com- 
missioners. Every  day  these  ofificers  meet  in  joint  session.  Af- 
fairs of  the  city  are  discussed,  and  all  needed  legislation  is  passed 
by  them.  It  is  at  these  meetings  that  we  see  a  great  contrast 
between  the  new  idea  and  the  old  council  system.  Instead  of 
having  business  reported  by  committees  and  sub-committees,  it 
is  considered  directly  by  the  commissioners  themselves.  Each  of- 
ficer is  in  constant  touch  with  his  own  department.  He  knows 
just  what  legislation  is  needed  for  it.  Hence  there  is  no  occasion 
to  resort  to  a  clumsy  and  inefificient  committee  in  order  to  ob- 
tain information  upon  any  given  point. 

For  a  city,  such  a  manner  of  conducting  legislation  has  great 
advantages.  It  is  direct.  There  are  no  confusing  committees 
and  boards  to  scatter  responsibility.  It  is  also  rapid.  Five  men, 
each  of  whom  thoroughly  understands  his  work,  can  pass  more 
intelligent  legislation  in  one  short  sitting  than  an  uninformed 
and  hesitating  council  will  get  through  in  a  week's  time. 

The  commission  secures  responsibility  and  efficiency.  It  is 
also  economic.  Responsibility  is  procured  by  centering  individ- 
ual obligation  upon  each  commissioner  as  the  head  of  a  depart- 


26  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

tnent.  Efficiency  follows  as  a  consequence.  In  Des  Moines, 
after  the  adoption  of  the  plan,  a  number  of  influential  citizens 
Avent  to  Commissioner  Hamery,  in  charge  of  the  Department 
of  Public  Safety.  They  told  him  he  was  responsible  for  the 
abominable  conditions  existing  in  the  red  light  district,  and  that 
he  would  be  held  personally  accountable  for  future  conditions. 
The  result  was  that  the  whole  objectionable  section  was  abol- 
ished. Responsibility  had  been  obtained.  As  soon  as  it  was  se- 
cured, efficiency  was  not  long  delayed. 

It  might  seem  upon  first  glance  that  paying  large  salaries 
to  these  commissioners  would  add  to  the  already  enormous  debt 
of  the  average  city.  But  this  has  not  been  the  case.  Through 
greater  simplicity  in  organization,  and  the  adoption  of  business 
methods,  commissioners  have,  in  almost  every  case,  been  able 
to  save  annually  for  the  city  amounts  far  in  excess  of  their  own 
salaries.  In  addition  they  have  secured  better  service  than  for- 
merly. 


This  movement  in  the  middle  west  is  concerned  with  noth- 
ing less  than  the  underlying  features  of  the  two  great  problems 
of  city  government:  the  relation  of  the  city  to  the  state;  and  the 
relation  of  the  city  to  its  individual  citizens.  If  through  the  state 
administrative  commission,  the  citizens  who  are  back  of  this  agi- 
tation can  establish  a  reasonable  relationship  between  the  state 
and  the  city,  and  if  by  means  of  the  city  commission  they  can  se- 
cure to  the  individual  citizen  a  responsible  and  efficient  govern- 
ment, they  will  indeed  have  done  much  toward  solving  one  of  the 
greatest  economic  and  political  problems  that  confront  the 
American  people  today. 


National  Municipal  League,  Proceedings  of  the  Providence 
Conference  for  Good  City  Government,  1907.  pp.  142-55. 

Galveston  Plan  of  City  Government.     William  Bennett  Munro. 

Galveston,  as  is  well  known,  was  the  first  American  city  to 
give  the  system  of  "government  by  commission"  a  trial.  .  .  . 
The  old  municipal  framework  was  abolished  root  and  branch, 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  2T 

and  by  a  new  charter,  granted  in  1901,  the  administration  of  the 
city  was  entrusted  to  five  commissioners,  three  of  whom  were  to 
be  appointed  by  the  governor  and  two  elected  by  the  citizens  of 
Galveston.  Before  long,  however,  the  constitutionality  of  the 
charter  was  called  into  question,  and  the  Supreme  Court  of 
Texas  decided  that  certain  functions  which  the  commissioners 
had  been  authorized  to  assume  could  not  be  exercised  except 
by  elective  ofificers.  In  March,  1903,  therefore,  the  legislature 
was  appealed  to  for  an  amendment  to  the  charter  making  all  the 
commissioners  elective,  and  the  five  original  commissioners  were 
forthwith  endorsed  by  the  voters  at  the  polls. 

The  Galveston  charter,  amended  in  1903,  provides  for  the 
popular  election,  every  two  years,  of  five  commissioners,  one  of 
whom  is  given  the  title  of  mayor-president.  All  are  elected  at 
large.  The  mayor-president  is  presiding  officer  of  the  commis- 
sion but  otherwise  has  no  special  powers.  By  a  majority  vote 
of  the  five  commissioners  all  municipal  ordinances  are  passed, 
and  all  appropriations  are  voted,  the  mayor-president  having  no 
right  to  veto  either  absolute  or  qualified.  The  commissioners 
likewise,  by  majority  vote,  apportion  among  themselves  the  head- 
ships of  the  four  main  departments  of  civic  administration, 
namely,  finance  and  revenue,  waterworks  and  sewerage,  police 
and  fire  protection,  and  streets  and  public  property ;  the  mayor- 
president  having  no  special  department  but  exercising  a  general 
coordinating  influence  over  all.  A  single  commissioner  is,  there- 
fore, immediately  responsible  for  the  administration  of  each 
department.  The  commission  as  a  whole  draws  up  and  passes 
the  annual  budget,  awards  all  contracts,  and  makes  all  important 
appointments.  Minor  appointments  are  made  by  the  individual 
commissioners  each  in  his  own  special  department.  There  is 
throughout  a  complete  centralization  of  all  powers,  legislative 
and  administrative,  and  a  very  definite  location  of  all  respon- 
sibility. 

No  one  who  has  made  any  impartial  attempt  to  follow  the 
work  of  the  Galveston  commission  during  the  last  six  years  will 
venture  to  gainsay  its  very  striking  success.  The  financial 
condition  of  the  city  has  been  most  decidedly  improved;  all  the 
municipal  services  have  been  brought  to  a  much  higher  point  ot 


28  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

efficiency;  a  better  grade  of  citizens  has  been  willing  to  seek 
and  accept  civic  office;  and  the  general  tone  of  municipal  ad- 
ministration has  been  very  noticeably  raised.  The  commissioners 
present,  in  their  reports,  such  a  convincing  array  of  facts  that 
it  would  be  idle  to  question  the  success  of  the  new  regime.  The 
success  has  been  attributable  in  general  to  three  or  four  canons 
of  policy,  from  which  the  commissioners  have  not  swerved  dur- 
ing the  last  five  years,  and  which  may  be  summed  up  as  (i)  the 
use  of  approved  business  methods  in  civic  financing;  (2)  the 
entire  elimination  of  all  leakages  in  expenditures;  (3)  the 
making  of  all  appointments  on  a  basis  of  individual  efficiency; 
and  (4)  the  strict  accountability  of  each  commissioner  for  the 
on-goings  of  his  own  department.  All  the  improvements  of  the 
last  half  decade  in  the  Texas  city  can  be  attributed,  substantially, 
to  the  fact  that  the  new  system  of  government  has  rendered 
strict  adherence  to  these  fundamental  rules  of  sound  municipal 
administration  possible  and  even  imperative. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  speak  in  any  detail  of  specific  ad- 
vantages made  in  municipal  administration  by  Galveston  under 
the  system  of  government  by  commission.  It  is  enough  that 
these  were  readily  noted  by  neighboring  Texan  cities,  and 
that  the  latter  soon  bestirred  themselves  to  the  task  of  inaugurat- 
ing a  similar  framework  of  administration.  Since  1903,  charters 
fundamentally  similar  to  that  of  Galveston  have  been  sought 
and  obtained  by  five  other  cities  of  Texas :  Houston,  Fort  Worth, 
Austin,  Dallas,  and  El  Paso.  The  experience,  moreover,  was  not 
lost  upon  many  cities  in  the  North,  and  during  the  last  two 
or  three  years,  measures  have  been  introduced  into  the  legis- 
latures of  at  least  a  dozen  states  all  aiming  to  permit  cities  to 
simplify  their  framework  of  administration  more  or  less  gen- 
erally in  accord  with  the  Texan  plan.  At  its  last  session  the 
Legislature  of  Iowa  put  such  a  measure  upon  the  statute  books, 
rendering  optional  to  all  cities  of  over  25,000  population  the 
adoption  of  the  commission  system.  This  privilege  has  already 
found  acceptance  in  the  capital  city  of  Des  Moines;  in  this  case 
provision  being  made  for  the  employment  of  certain  advanced 
methods  of  securing  the  strict  and  consistent  responsibility  of 
the  authorities  to  their  constituents. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMEiNT  2(> 

Despite  a  general  impression  that  the  commission  system 
of  local  administration  is  a  novelty  in  American  government,  the 
principle  involved  is  by  no  means  new  in  the  United  States. 
It  is  in  almost  no  important  respect  different  from  the  New  Eng- 
land system  of  town  government  by  a  board  of  selectmen,  who, 
with  their  chairman,  assume  and  concentrate  in  themselves  all 
administrative  and  legislative  functions  from  one  annual  elec- 
tion until  the  next.  There  are  many  New  England  "towns"  with 
populations  quite  large  enough  to  entitle  them  to  rank  as  cities, 
which  have,  for  more  than  a  century,  maintained  what  is  to  all 
intents  and  purposes  a  system  of  government  by  commission. 
Their  selectmen,  w'ho  are  chosen  by  the  people  at  large,  repre- 
sent in  their  jurisdiction  a  complete  fusion  of  local  power  and 
responsibility.  In  every  state  of  the  Union,  moreover  (with 
the  exception  of  Louisiana  and  Rhode  Island),  county  admin- 
istration has  been  vested  almost  wholly  in  the  hands  of  an  elec- 
tive commission.  The  use  of  the  term  "commission"  has  mis- 
led many  into  overlooking  a  system  with  which  they  have  been 
long  familiar  under  a  different  designation.  American  cities 
have  had  occasion,  no  doubt,  to  become  familiar  with  "commis- 
sions" but  with  commissions  of  a  very  different  sort. 

No  aspect  of  the  general  problem  of  municipal  reform  has 
received  more  attention  by  the  press  and  on  the  platform  during 
the  last  year  than  the  merits  and  defects  of  the  commission  plan. 
In  the  main,  however,  these  discussions  have  dwelt  largely  upon 
the  advantages  of  the  system,  many  of  which  are  almost  too 
obvious  to  require  emphasis.  The  defects,  on  the  other  hand,  do^ 
not  appear  on  the  surface  so  plainly,  though  a  closer  examina- 
tion will  disclose  that  the  system  of  government  by  commission, 
if  generally  applied  to  American  cities  under  present  conditions, 
would  in  all  probability  encounter  important  objections  which 
no  real  friend  of  permanent  municipal  reform  ought  to  treat 
lightly.  Some  of  these  relative  merits  and  defects  may  be  brief- 
ly noticed,  so  far  as  it  may  be  accounted  safe  to  generalize  in 
the  light  of  American  municipal  experience. 

The  cardinal  advantage  of  the  system  is  that  it  affords  defi- 
nite hope  of  putting  an  end  to  the  intolerable  decentralization  of 
responsibility  which  now  characterizes  American  civic  adminis- 


JO  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

tration.  By  concentrating  powers  and  focusing-  public  attention 
upon  a  narrow  area  it  will  render  more  effective  the  scrutiny 
which  the  voters  may  apply  to  the  conduct  of  men  in  public 
ofifice.  If  the  system  does  not  guarantee  efficient  administra- 
tion, it  at  least  promises  to  disclose  where  the  blame  for  in- 
efficiency should  be  made  to  fall.  It  will  undoubtedly  facilitate 
the  election  of  a  higher  type  of  men,  for  American  municipal 
experience  has  plainly  demonstrated  that  small  bodies  with  large 
powers  attract  a  better  class  of  citizens  than  large  bodies  with 
restricted  jurisdiction.  The  reduction  in  numbers  of  the  school 
boards  of  St.  Louis,  Boston,  and  other  large  cities  has  served 
to  show  the  truth  of  this  aphorism  in  conclusive  fashion.  Even 
though  party  organizations  may  continue  to  dictate  the  nomina- 
tion of  commissioners,  as  they  now  do  that  of  councilmen,  these 
organizations  will  no  longer  be  placed  under  pressure  to  give 
representation  to  every  sectional,  racial,  and  religious  interest 
at  the  cost  of  placing  inferior  men  in  candidacy.  That  govern- 
ment by  commission  will  eliminate  partisan  candidatures  is  some- 
thing scarcely  to  be  hoped  for;  but  there  is  good  reason  to 
believe  that  it  would  remove  from  party  organizations  much  of 
the  sinister  pressure  with  which  these  have  now  to  contend. 

Again,  it  is  well  known  that  municipal  corruption  nowadays 
arises  as  frequently  from  the  power  of  municipal  authorities  to 
thwart  the  meritorious  plans  of  public-service  corporations  as 
from  their  power  to  forward  reprehensible  projects.  If  the 
present  system  of  checks  and  balances  puts  a  restriction  upon  the 
ill-considered  granting  away  of  privileges,  it  none  the  less  puts 
a  premium  upon  the  withholding  of  rights  which  should,  in  all 
public  interest,  be  granted  without  hesitation.  It  is  extremely 
doubtful  whether  the  chances  of  obtaining  a  municipal  franchise 
at  the  present  time  in  any  large  city  are  properly  proportioned 
to  the  merits  of  an  application  therefore.  A  small  commission 
would,  indeed,  simplify  the  task  of  dealing  with  civic  franchises 
on  a  business  basis,  and,  if  there  be  any  fear  that  the  unchecked 
power  of  granting  municipal  franchises  is  a  jurisdiction  too 
momentous  to  be  vested  in  the  hands  of  a  small  body,  provision 
may  be  made,  as  in  the  Des  Moines  charter,  for  having  the  acts 
■of  the  commission  in  this  sphere  subject  to  ratification  by  the 
voters. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  31 

Still  again,  as  we  are  frequently  reminded,  the  work  of  ad- 
ministering the  affairs  of  a  city  is  in  every  essential  respect  akirv 
to  that  of  conducting  the  affairs  of  a  private  business  corpora- 
tion. Now  the  salient  characteristics  of  sound  corporate  manage- 
ment is  the  centralization  of  powers  in  the  hands  of  a  small 
board  of  directors.  What,  we  are  asked,  would  be  thought  of  a 
business  corporation  which  intrusted  the  management  of  its  in- 
terests to  a  bicameral  board,  made  up  of  classes  of  members 
selected  in  different  ways,  representing  different  interests,  pos- 
sessing separate  jurisdictions,  and  designed  to  embody  a  system 
of  checks  and  balances?  Why  should  the  affairs  of  a  municipal- 
ity demand  an  administrative  machinery  so  much  more  complex 
than  that  of  the  largest  private  corporation?  There  is  danger, 
however,  of  pressing  this  point  too  far,  for  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  the  analogy  between  the  work  of  the  municipal  and. 
that  of  the  private  corporation  is  by  no  means  perfect.  The  city, 
for  example,  enjoys  many  legal  privileges  and  immunities  which 
an  ordinary  business  corporation  does  not  possess.  It  is  not 
legally  responsible  for  the  torts  of  its  police  officers,  of  the 
employes  of  its  fire  department,  or  for  those  of  several  other 
classes  of  its  agents;  whereas  the  private  corporation  is  di- 
rectly liable  to  be  heavily  mulcted  for  the  negligence  or  in- 
efficiency of  those  whom  it  takes  into  its  service.  Further- 
more, in  determining  matters  of  policy  the  authorities  of  a 
municipality  must  give  weight  to  many  considerations  of  social 
well-being  which  the  management  of  a  private  corporation  may 
afford  to  neglect.  It  must  be  admitted,  too,  that  administration 
by  a  board  of  directors  is  not  necessarily  synonymous  with  integ- 
rity and  efficiency.  One  need  not  go  far  afield  to  find  instances 
in  which  directors  have  been  deficient  in  their  knowledge  of  af- 
fairs immediately  in  their  care,  or  in  which  they  have  personally 
profited  at  the  expense  of  those  interests  which  they  were  cho- 
sen to  guard.  Nevertheless,  it  may  be  said  with  truth  that  there 
is  plenty  of  room  for  the  infusion  of  "business  principles"  into 
civic  administration,  and  the  analogy,  if  not  pushed  too  far,, 
has  much  force. 

The    system   of   government   by   commission    will    serve   to 
render  municipal  administration  more  prompt  and  more  effective 


32  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

in  action.  In  a  multitude  of  counsellors  there  may  be  wisdom, 
but  there  is  also,  almost  inevitably,  friction,  delay,  and  intriguery. 
A  system  of  division  of  powers  is  almost  certain  to  counter- 
balance what  it  gains  in  security  against  hasty  and  arbitrary  ac- 
tion what  it  loses  in  inability  to  cope  with  problems  which 
demand  prompt,  united  and  uncompromising  attention.  In  local 
administration  promptness  and  efficiency  are  imperative;  and 
it  may  be  properly  urged  that,  in  order  to  secure  these  essential 
qualities,  a  municipality  is  justified  in  weakening  its  organs  of 
deliberation  and  in  assuming  a  reasonable  amount  of  risk  that 
concentrated  power  will  be  abused. 

There  are,  no  doubt,  many  incidental  advantages  which 
cities  may  reasonably  hope  to  secure  from  the  introduction  of  the 
commission  system,  and  to  these  the  experience  of  Galveston 
bears  abundant  testimony.  Most  of  these,  however,  are  relative 
to  the  existing  conditions  in  particular  cities,  and  may  not, 
therefore,  be  dealt  with  in  general  terms. 

To  the  casual  student  the  defects  of  the  commission  system 
are,  perhaps,  not  so  apparent  as  the  merits.  They  exist,  never- 
theless, and  are  of  sufficient  importance  to  demand  careful  and 
judicious  consideration;  for  the  cause  of  municipal  reform  may 
receive  permanent  injury  through  the  open  advocacy  by  its 
friends  of  any  plan  of  administration  which  has  not  been  ade- 
quately studied  in  the  light  of  conditions  which  now  exist  or  are 
likely  to  exist  in  American  cities. 

The  most  common  objections  urged  in  the  public  press  and 
by  the  rank  and  file  of  municipal  politicians  is  that  the  plan 
is  un-American  and  undemocratic;  that  it  involves  a  radical 
departure  from  American  traditions  of  local  self-government  and 
proposes  a  step  in  the  direction  of  municipal  dictatorships.  This 
objection  is  as  easy  to  raise  as  it  is  difficult  to  support.  The 
present  framework  of  municipal  administration,  with  its  division 
of  powers,  is  not  a  whit  more  traditionally  "American"  than  is 
the  New  England  town  system  of  government  by  a  board  of 
selectmen  with  no  division  of  powers  whatever.  That  the  system 
of  administration  by  a  small  body  of  men  tends  to  remove  con- 
trol "away  from  the  people"  is  an  assertion  which  the  whole  his- 
tory of  local  government  in  the  United  States  absolutely  refutes. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  33 

Indeed,  it  has  been  proven  time  and  again  that  a  single  elective 
officer  may,  in  his  official  actions,  more  faithfully  reflect  public 
opinion  than  a  large  body  of  elected  representatives.  Much 
of  the  latent  and  unreasoning  prejudice  against  the  new  plan 
springs,  no  doubt,  from  the  popular  association  of  the  "com- 
mission" with  the  idea  of  state  interference  in  municipal  matters. 

The  observant  De  Tocqueville  once  remarked  that  local 
government  is  to  national  what  the  elementary  school  is  to  the 
university;  that  each  in  its  respective  sphere  performs  the 
work  of  preparation.  Political  education,  it  has  been  ob- 
served, consists  in  the  exercise  not  only  of  the  right  to  choose 
but  of  the  right  to  be  chosen — in  candidacy  and  in  service — and 
under  the  present  municipal  regime  such  education  is  annually 
afforded  to  a  large  number  of  citizens.  The  plan  of  government 
by  commission  proposes  greatly  to  reduce  this  number.  It  would 
cut  down  the  list  of  elective  officers  to  four  or  five,  all  other 
posts  being  filled  by  appointment  presumably  for  long  terms. 
This  policy,  it  is  objected,  would  tend  to  vest  the  work  of  civic 
administration  permanently  in  the  hands  of  a  very  few  men, 
and  might  very  well  assist  in  the  development,  as  in  the  German 
cities,  of  a  professional  city  bureaucracy.  The  present  multi- 
plication of  elective  officers  affords,  to  a  unique  degree,  the  op- 
portunity for  a  large  number  of  citizens  to  be  brought  into 
touch  with  local  political  affairs  and  to  obtain  such  political 
education  as  this  contact  involves. 

Again,  objection  is  made  that  the  system  will  serve  to 
strengthen  rafher  than  to  weaken  the  influence  of  the  regular 
partisan  organizations  in  civic  affairs.  The  concentration  of 
power  and  patronage  in  the  hands  of  a  few  commissioners  would, 
it  is  claimed,  make  it  seem  imperative  to  the  party  leaders  that 
the  commission  should  be  controlled;  and  the  party  energies, 
now  spread  over  a  wider  area,  would  thus  be  concentrated  at  a 
single  point.  It  is  quite  true  whenever  the  power  and  the  patron- 
age of  the  mayor  have  been  extended  the  result  has  not  been  to 
diminish  the  force  of  partisanship  in  mayoralty  elections ;  on  the 
contrary,  party  leaders  have  been  impelled  to  make  more  ener- 
getic campaigns  and  to  perfect  their  organizations  in  order  that 
they  might  control  an  office  which  had  become  the  more  valuable 


34  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

to  them.  Furthermore,  the  election  of  four  or  five  commission- 
ers by  the  voters  at  large  would,  in  all  probability,  result  in  se- 
lections from  the  ranks  of  a  single  party;  the  dominant  party 
could  in  most  cases  elect  its  whole  slate,  and  the  minority  party 
would  in  consequence  be  wholly  unrepresented.  There  might,  no 
doubt  be  frequent  exceptions  to  this,  but  it  would  be  the  more 
usual  outcome.  On  the  other  hand,  a  large  council,  the  members 
of  which  are  elected  by  small  districts,  will  almost  certainly  con- 
tain representatives  of  the  weaker  political  party.  Much  of 
the  hopes  placed  upon  the  new  system  arise  from  the  proposal 
that  commissioners  shall  be  elected  at  large;  but  it  must  not 
be  forgotten  that  the  plan  of  election  at  large  is  not  without 
its  counterbalancing  defects. 

It  has,  perhaps,  been  characteristic  of  the  American  voter 
that  he  is  prone  to  lay  too  much  stress  upon  the  form  of 
government  and  too  little  upon  its  personnel.  He  is  not  always- 
quick  to  see  that  the  more  efficient  administration  of  European, 
cities  results  not  at  all  from  their  superior  framework  of  local 
government,  but  from  the  higher  calibre  of  men  who  seek  and 
obtain  municipal  office.  Without  a  change  of  personnel,  the- 
substitution  of  government  by  commission  for  the  existing  sys- 
tem would  assuredly  avail  but  little.  Indeed,  a  corrupt  or  an 
inefficient  commission  with  wide  powers  would  be  much  more 
capable  of  injuring  the  best  interests  of  a  city  than  an  equally- 
corrupt  or  inefficient  set  of  administrative  organs  with  powers 
and  patronage  decentralized;  for  the  very  complexity  and 
cumbrousness  of  the  present  system  serves  in  some  degree  to 
place  an  obstacle  in  the  way  of  any  widespread  or  consistent 
wrong-doing.  The  real  question  is,  therefore,  whether  a  better 
class  of  men  would  be  attracted  to  a  small  commission  than  a 
large  council.  To  this  the  lesson  of  experience  seems  to  give  an 
affirmative  reply.  But  it  is  a  matter  of  probability  rather  than 
a   matter   of   certainty. 

Sponsors  of  the  commission  plan  have  sometimes  urged  that 
its  adoption  would  ensure  administration  by  skilled  experts, 
since  appointments  made  by  a  small  body  would  probably  be 
dictated  by  reason  of  merit  and  experience  alone.  It  may  be 
noted,  however,  that  the  vesting  of  the  right  of  appointment  in 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  35 

the  hands  of  a  small  body,  or  even  in  the  hands  of  a  single  of- 
ficer, would  not  necessarily  ensure  this  result.  There  was  a  time 
in  American  cities  when  patronage  was  committed  to  the  munic- 
ipal council,  and  under  this  system  partisan  considerations  al- 
most exclusively  influenced  the  making  of  appointments  to  of- 
fice. Municipal  reformers  insisted  that  this  pernicious  policy 
could  be  brought  to  an  end  only  by  transferring  the  appointing 
power  to  the  mayor  and  by  placing  upon  the  mayor  alone  the 
full  and  entire  responsibility.  But  during  the  decade  or  more 
since  this  transfer  has  been  made  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether 
individual  merit  and  capabilities  have  counted  much  more  in  de- 
termining appointments  than  they  did  in  the  days  when  the 
council  possessed  the  patronage.  Now  it  is  proposed  to  vest  the 
patronage  once  again  with  a  body  of  men;  but  one  may  scarcely 
venture  to  hope  t'hat  partisan  considerations  will  lose  much  of 
their  strength  because  of  any  such  further  transfer.  Definite  lo- 
cation of  responsibility  for  civic  appointments  seems,  as  exper- 
ience shows,  to  afford  some  assurance  against  gross  inefficiency; 
it  does  not,  apparently,  afford  a  guarantee  that  the  degree  of  ef- 
ficiency will  be  very  high. 

An  important  feature  of  both  the  Galveston  and  Des  Moines 
plans  of  city  government  by  commission  is  that  the  "appropri- 
ating" and  "spending"  authorities  are  fused.  In  other  branches 
of  American  government  it  has  been  the  policy  to  keep  these  two 
jurisdictions  distinct  and  independent;  and  this  has  been  true 
alike  of  national,  state  and  local  administration.  The  legislative 
organs  appropriate  the  funds,  the  administrative  organs  super- 
vise their  expenditure.  In  the  New  England  system  of  town 
government  the  board  of  selectmen  does  .not  appropriate  moneys 
ior  any  purpose ;  this  function  is  reserved  to  the  annual  "town 
meeting."  The  concentration  of  both  powers  in  the  hands  of  a 
single  small  commission  might,  and  probably  would,  serve  the 
interests  of  integrity  so  long  as  men  of  the  right  caliber 
constituted  the  commission;  but  there  are  those  who  see  in  this 
fusion  of  jurisdictions  a  potential  element  of  danger.  It  in- 
volves, at  any  rate,  a  radical  departure  from  a  principle  which 
"has  hitherto  characterized  not  alone  American  government,  but 
the  governmental  systems  of  the  leading  European  states  as  well. 


36  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

In  the  successful  administration  of  German  cities,  for  example, 
this  separation  of  the  appropriating  from  the  spending  depart- 
ments has  always  been  strongly  emphasized. 

It  is  sometimes  urged  that  the  general  adoption  of  the  sys- 
tem of  government  by  commission  would  encourage  state  in- 
tervention in  municipal  afifairs.  In  every  large  city  there  come 
up,  year  by  year,  many  important  questions  which  demand  broad 
legislative  action.  Now,  whether  their  policy  has  been  wise  or 
unwise  in  this  direction,  it  is  an  undoubted  fact  that  state  author- 
ities have  been  extremely  loath  to  entrust  broad  legislative  func- 
tions to  small  boards  whose  jurisdiction  is  mainly  administra- 
tive. The  association  of  well-considered  legislative  action  with 
large  bodies  is  deeply  imbedded  in  the  American  mind  and  will 
not  be  easily  eradicated.  If  large  municipal  councils  are  elim- 
inated from  the  framework  of  city  government  there  would  seem 
to  be  a  danger  that  state  legislatures  would  be  tempted  to  as- 
sume for  themselves  some  of  the  broader  legislative  functions 
which  the  councils  have  been  accustomed  to  exercise.  At  any 
rate,  we  know  from  experience  that  where  the  legislative  powers 
of  municipal  councils  have  been  curtailed  their  former  powers 
have  usually  been  assumed  by  the  state  legislature  and  have  not 
been  transferred  to  some  other  organ  of  local  government.  That 
there  has  been,  on  the  whole,  too  much  state  interference  in  mu- 
nicipal afifairs  most  students  of  government  are  disposed  to  ad- 
mit ;  this  intervention  has  been  on  occasions  salutary,  but  more 
often  detrimental  to  the  best  interests  of  the  cities  concerned.  It 
may  properly  be  urged,  therefore,  that  any  step  which  promises 
to  afford  an  incentive  to  greater  inroads  upon  the  principle  of 
civic  autonomy  should,  not  be  taken  hastily  or  without  due  con- 
sideration of  its  less  immediate  but  none  the  less  important  con- 
sequences. 

In  weighing  the  respective  merits  and  defects  of  the  Gal- 
veston plan  as  these  would  probably  work  out  were  the  system 
given  general  application,  the  burden  of  proof  ought  in  fairness 
to  be  placed  upon  those  who  advocate  the  extension.  A  change 
in  any  department  of  American  government  which  involves  a 
transformation  so  complete  of  the  whole  framework  of  organiza- 
tion should  not  be  readily  adopted  until  it  can  be  said  to  promise. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  37 

with  a  reasonable  degree  of  certainty,  a  very  decisive  improve- 
ment in  civic  administration.  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the 
experiment  of  government  by  commission  has  as  yet  been  ade- 
quately tried  in  Galveston  alone,  and  that  here  the  circumstances 
were  distinctly  unusual.  A  receivership  may  be  the  best  means 
of  getting  a  bankrupt  business  corporation  upon  its  financial 
feet,  but  it  does  not  follow  that  all  sound  and  solvent  concerns 
should  forthwith  permanently  adopt  this  method  of  administer- 
ing their  affairs. 

On  the  other  hand,  as  the  present  system  of  civic  admin- 
istration is  too  complicated,  and  too  cursed  with  the  curse  of 
divided  responsibility  to  prove  reasonably  efificient,  any  step 
in  the  direction  of  simplification  should  be  welcomed  by  those 
who  have  the  best  interests  of  American  cities  at  heart.  Those 
who  are  prone  to  look  askance  at  anything  which  involves  con- 
centration of  power  may  be  reminded  that  such  is  never 
dangerous  when  accompanied  by  a  equal  concentration  of  re- 
sponsibility. Now  a  few  American  cities  at  the  present  time  are, 
as  every  one  knows,  controlled  by  small  coteries  of  men — party 
managers — who  dominate  the  official  organs.  These  men  are 
dangerous  because  they  concentrate  power  without  responsibility. 
The  system  of  government  by  commission,  if  it  would  not  elim- 
inate the  "bosses,"  promises  at  any  rate  to  compel  them  to  work 
in  the  open. 

Experiments  with  the  Galveston  plan  in  a  number  of  cities 
differing  in  size  and  situated  in  different  parts  of  the  country, 
will  serve  to  mark  out  more  clearly  the  merits  and  defects  of  the 
system  in  action.  Such  experiment  may  be  welcomed  as  paving 
the  way  for  what  may  secure  substantial  improvement  in  civic 
administration  ;  but  no  one  who  appreciates  the  difficulties  of  the 
problem  will  readily  hope  to  find  in  this  or  in  any  other  formal 
change  a  panacea  for  all  municipal  ills.  The  plan  can  be  said  to 
have  established  a  prima  facie  case;  and  it  well  deserves  a  sym- 
pathetic trial  on  a  sufficiently  broad  scale  to  enable  it  to  be  fairly 
judged. 


38  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

American   Political    Science    Association,    Proceedings,    1907. 
4:  189-92. 

Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Government.  Benjamin  F   Shambaugh. 

I  shall  not  in  this  paper  attempt  to  exploit  the  Des  Moines 
plan  of  city  government  as  a  method  of  municipal  reform  or  as 
a  solution  of  the  problems  of  city  administration.  My  purpose 
will  be  simply  to  point  out  such  of  the  newer  institutional  forms 
of  democracy  as  are  expressed  in  '"An  act  to  provide  for  the  gov- 
ernment of  certain  cities,"  recently  passed  by  the  general  as- 
sembly of  Iowa  and  applicable  to  all  cities  of  the  first-class  in 
that  state,  having  a  population  of  25,000  or  over. 

Having  been  originally  brought  forward  and  urged  by  the 
people  of  the  city  of  Des  Moines,  the  system  of  government  out- 
lined in  the  act  of  the  general  assembly  has  come  to  be  known 
generally  as  "The  Des  Moines  Plan  of  City  Government."  It 
has  already  been  adopted  by  two  of  the  leading  cities  of  the 
state,  namely:  Des  Moines  and  Cedar  Rapids — but  organization 
under  the  new  system  has  not  yet  been  effected  in  either  place. 
The  Des  IMoines  plan  is  of  course  not  an  altogether  unique 
system  of  municipal  government.  It  is  simply  a  new  edition  of 
the  more  familiar  commission  plan ;  or,  it  is  the  Galveston  plan 
revised.  Briefly,  it  provides  for  the  government  of  the  city  by  a 
council  consisting  of  a  mayor  and  four  councilmen  who  are  vest- 
ed with  all  executive,  legislative,  and  judicial  powers  and  duties 
now  had,  possessed  and  exercised  by  the  mayor,  city  council, 
board  of  public  works,  park  commissioners,  board  of  police  and 
fire  commissioners,  board  of  waterworks  trustees,  board  of 
library  trustees,  solicitor,  assessor,  treasurer,  auditor,  city  en- 
gineer, and  other  executive  and  administrative  of^cers  in  cities 
of  the  first-class. 

Furthermore,  the  executive  and  administrative  powers  and 
duties  are  distributed  among  five  departments  designated  re- 
spectively as:  department  of  public  affairs;  department  of  ac- 
counts and  finances;  department  of  public  safety;  department  of 
streets  and  public  improvements;  and  department  of  parks  and 
public  property.  And,  moreover,  each  member  of  the  council  is 
required  to  serve  as  superintendent  of  a  department. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  39 

The  members  of  the  council  are  chosen  by  the  electorate  of 
the  city.  But  all  other  officers  and  assistants  (including  a  city 
clerk,  a  solicitor,  an  assessor,  a  treasurer,  an  auditor,  a  civil  en- 
gineer, a  city  physician,  a  marshal,  a  chief  of  fire  department,  a 
market  master,  a  street  commissioner,  and  three  library  trustees) 
are  elected  or  appointed  by  the  council  and  subject  to  removal 
at  any  time  by  the  same  authority.  It  is  also  provided  that  the 
council  shall  appoint  three  civil  service  commissioners  who  un- 
der the  direction  of  the  council  are  required  to  perform  the 
usual  duties  prescribed  for  such  civil  service  commissioners. 

Turning  now  to  the  newer  institutional  forms  of  democracy 
as  expressed  in  the  act  of  the  general  assembly  of  Iowa  the  fol- 
lowing deserve  mention: 

1.  Upon  the  petition  of  twenty-five  per  centum  of  the  voting 
electorate  the  Des  Moines  plan  of  government  is  submitted  in 
cities  of  the  first-class  to  a  direct  vote  of  the  people  for  adoption 
or  rejection.  And  similarly  upon  petition  a  vote  may  be  secured 
upon  the  abandonment  of  the  plan  at  any  time  after  it  has  been 
in  operation  for  six  years. 

2.  The  mayor  and  four  councilmcn  are  nominated  by  a  gen- 
eral non-partisan  primary  election,  that  is,  they  are  nominated 
by  the  electorate  at  large  at  a  primary  election  in  which  ballots 
are  used  containing  no  party  marks  whatever.  And  these  same 
officers  are  elected  biennially  at  large,  that  is,  on  a  general  ticket. 

3.  The  members  of  the  council  may  be  removed  or  recalled 
at  any  time  by  the  electorate.  For  it  is  provided  that  upon  the 
petition  of  twenty-five  per  centum  of  the  voting  electorate  the 
question  of  the  removal  of  the  incumbent  of  any  elective  office 
is  submitted  to  a  direct  vote  of  the  people. 

4.  Proposed  ordinances  may  be  submitted  to  the  council 
through  petition  from  the  electorate ;  and  such  proposed  or- 
dinances, if  not  passed  by  the  council,  are  submitted  without 
alteration  to  a  direct  vote  of  the  people.  Furthermore,  or- 
dinances proposed  by  petition  or  which  have  been  adopted  by  a 
vote  of  the  people  may  not  be  repealed  or  amended  except  by 
a  vote  of  the  people. 

5.  No  ordinance  passed  by  the  council  (except  in  certain 
cases  particularly  mentioned)    "shall   go   into  efifect   before  ten 


40  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

days  from  the  time  of  its  final  passage";  and  if  during  said 
ten  days  a  petition  signed  by  at  least  twenty-five  per  centum  of 
the  voting  electorate  is  presented  to  the  council  protesting 
against  the  passage  of  such  ordinance  the  same  shall  be  sus- 
pended from  going  into  operation  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of 
the  council  to  reconsider  such  ordinance,  and  if  the  same  is  not 
entirely  repealed  it  shall  be  submitted  by  the  council  to  the  di- 
rect vote  of  the  people. 

6.  "Every  ordinance  or  resolution  appropriating  money  or 
ordering  any  street  improvement  or  sewer,  or  making  or  author- 
izing the  making  of  any  contract,  or  granting  of  any  franchise  or 
right  to  occupy  or  use  the  streets,  highways,  bridges  or  public 
places  in  the  city  for  any  purpose,  shall  be  complete  in  the  form 
in  which  it  is  finally  passed,  and  remain  on  file  with  the 
city  clerk  for  public  inspection  at  least  one  week  before 
the  final  passage  or  adoption."  Moreover,  "every  franchise  or 
grant  for  interurban  or  street  railways,  gas  or  water-works, 
electric  light  or  power  plants,  heating  plants,  telegraph  or  tele- 
phone systems  or  other  public  service  utilities  within  (the)  city, 
must  be  authorized  or  approved"  by  a  direct  vote  of  the  people. 

7.  All  meetings  of  the  council  at  which  any  person  not  a 
city  ofificer  is  admitted  shall  be  open  to  the  public. 

8.  The  council  is  required  each  month  to  print  in  pamphlet 
form  for  distribution  a  detailed  itemized  statement  of  all  receipts 
and  expenditures  of  the  city  along  with  a  summary  of  its  pro- 
ceedings during  the  preceding  month.  And  at  the  end  of  each 
year  the  council  shall  provide  for  a  complete  examination  of  all 
books  and  accounts  of  the  city  by  competent  accountants  and 
shall  publish  the  results  of  all  such  examinations. 

Thus  it  is  seen  (to  summarize)  that  in  the  Des  Moines  plan 
of  city  government  the  democratic  idea  of  government  in  accord 
with  the  will  of  the  people  has  been  institutionalized  by  first 
centralizing  all  powers  and  authority  in  a  council  of  five  men 
and  then  making  that  council  directly  responsible  and  account- 
able to  the  electorate  for  the  faithful  performance  of  their  duties 
in  accordance  with  the  desires  of  the  people  through  these  newer 
institutional  forms  of  democracy,  namely: 
I.     The  non-partisan  primary. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  41 

2.  The  election  of  officers  at  large,  i.  c.,  on  a  general  ticket. 

3.  The  recall. 

4.  The  initiative. 

5.  The  referendum. 

6.  The  veto  or  protest. 

7.  The  publicity  of  all  business. 

8.  The  expert  examination  of  all  books  and  accounts. 


AFFIRMATIVE  DISCUSSION 

Commission   Government:   A    General   Statement. 
James   A.   Berryhill. 

Prepared  for  The  Commercial  Club  of  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
First.  The  plan  involves  the  concentration  of  full  responsibili- 
ties upon  a  limited  council,  five  in  number,  elected  at  large,  and 
thereby  responsible  to  the  entire  electorate  of  the  city.  By  limit- 
ing the  size  of  the  council  we  secure  the  same  effective  manage- 
ment so  notable  in  the  administration  of  great  business  corpora- 
tions. Under  the  old  system  of  divided  powers  and  distributed 
responsibility,  the  public  official  did  not  feel  that  degree  of  per- 
sonal responsibility  necessary  to  effective  action,  and  was  prone 
to  throw  the  burden,  especially  of  disagreeable  duties,  upon  his 
associate,  who  in  turn  evaded  the  responsibility.  If  concentrat- 
ed management  of  the  kind  in  question  can  succeed  in  the  ad- 
ministration of  such  great  corporations  as  the  United  States 
Steel,  the  New  York  Central,  Union  Pacific  and  other  railway 
companies,  and  such  great  banks  as  the  City  National  of  New 
York,  with  deposits  aggregating  nearly  two  hundred  and  fifty 
million  dollars,  and  of  other  great  institutions  of  similar  charac- 
ter, I  cannot  see  why  it  cannot  bring  success  in  the  administra- 
tion of  the  business  of  a  municipality.  The  chief  function  of  our 
city  is  the  business  one  involving  ordinary  business  problems 
like  those  assumed  by  private  corporations,  and  that  phase  of 
government  should  be  paramount  in  the  development  of  the  or- 
ganization. 

^  Second.  Recognizing  the  fact  that  the  council  of  the  city  must 
act  in  a  representative  capacity  and  in  order  to  enforce  general 
■supervisory  attention  of  the  affairs  of  the  entire  city, 
we  provide  for  the  election  of  the  councilmen-at-large.  Under 
the  old  ward  system  the  representative  of  the  ward  does  not  rec- 
ognize his  responsibility  to  the  city  at  large,  and  is  driven  inev- 


44  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

itably  into  combinations  with  the  representatives  of  other  wards, 
whereby  the  interests  of  his  ward  or  of  the  combination,  which' 
frequently  represents  a  bare  majority  of  the  council,  are  cared 
for,  to  the  detriment  of  the  interests  of  the  city  at  large.  Under 
the  ward  system  the  voters  are  given  but  a  fractional  influence 
in  the  affairs  of  the  city.  Such  a  system  inevitably  involves  the 
evasion  of  duty  by  public  repr£sentatives. 

Third.  We  recognize  the  fact  tliat  the  power  to  grant  fran- 
chises to  public  service  corporations  is  likely  to  involve  the  cor- 
ruption of  public  officials  and  to  avoid  that  possibility  we  provide 
that  all  franchises  shall  not  take  efifect  until  they  are  approved 
by  a  majority  vote  of  the  electors  of  the  city  in  question.  The 
submission  of  the  franchise  proposition  to  the  electors  is  made 
mandatory.  You  can  readily  see  that  under  this  provision  it 
would  be  futile  for  the  franchise  corporation  tc  purchase  the 
public    officials. 

Fourth.  That  the  community  may  be  advised  of  all  public 
legislation  affecting  its  interests,  we  provide  for  publicity  by  pre- 
scribing that  ordinances  shall  be  perfected  in  complete  form 
and  remain  upon  the  table  subject  to  inspection  for  a  week  be- 
fore final  passage.  This  would  give  the  citizens  an  opportunity 
to  protest  against  objectionable  ordinances  during  the  week  pri- 
or to  their  passage.  To  render  assurance  doubly  sure,  we  pro- 
vide that  ordinances,  except  those  of  an  emergency  character, 
shall,  after  passage,  remain  in  the  clerk's  office,  subject  to 
public  inspection  for  a  period  of  ten  days,  before  taking  effect, 
and  during  that  interim  we  grant  to  the  electors  the  right,  upon 
petition  of  twenty-five  per  cent  of  their  number,  to  demand  a 
referendum  upon  the  ordinances  in  question,  or  a  submission  to 
a  popular  vote. 

Fifth.  Again  recognizing  the  fact  that  the  electors  own  the 
city  and  that  the  council  is  simply  representative,  we  provide  for 
the  initiative.  In  the  event  that  the  council  proves  refractory 
and  refuses  to  consider  legislation  of  important  public  moment, 
we  give  to  the  electors  the  right  to  demand  the  submission  of 
public  questions  to  a  popular  vote  and  make  it  mandatory  upon 
the  council  to  submit  such  propositions  to  such  vote  upon  such 
demand. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  45 

Sixth.  In  the  event  that  councilmen  prove  traitors  to  the 
public  interest  and  betray  their  constituents,  wa  grant  to  the 
electors  the  right  to  recall  an  objectionable  councilman  and 
to  fill  his  place  with  a  successor  more  responsive  to  the  public 
interest. 

Seventh.  In  order  to  avoid  political  machine,  and  rabid  par- 
tisan rule,  we  provide  for  a  non-partisan  nomination  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  non-partisan  election  of  councilmen. 

Under  the  administration  of  this  law  the  past  nine  months  we 
have  secured  extremely  satisfactory  government.  The  general 
consensus  of  opinion  of  our  citizens  is  that  the  system  has  in 
every  way  been  successful,  and  I  believe  that  should  the  matter 
be  re-submitted  to  the  voters  fully  90  per  cent  would  approve  of 
the  plan  and  advocate  its  ratification.  We  believe  that  our  indi- 
vidual councilmen  have  been  more  alert  in  the  performance  of 
their  duties,  more  considerate  of  the  public  interest  and  more 
eflfective  in  their  work  than  any  council  we  ever  had  in  this  city. 
Our  government  is  extremely  efficient  and  economical  and  we  be- 
lieve we  are  getting  far  better  returns  than  ever  before.  We  do 
not  rely  on  the  voluntary  work  of  the  council,  but  compensate 
them  liberally  for  their  services. 

You  will  observe  from  the  outline  herein  given  that  we  have 
in  effect  reintroduced  the  New  England  town  meeting  system  of 
government  adapting  it  to  large  communities.  We  recognize 
the  fact  that  large  town  meetings  of  all  the  electors  could  not  be 
conducted  upon  a  deliberative  basis,  and  the  ballot  must  of  ne- 
cessity be  made  use  of  to  secure  an  expression  of  the  popular 
will.  The  election  is  a  substitute  for  the  town  meeting  and 
the  initiative  and  referendum  give  to  the  citizens  all  of  the  privi- 
leges reserved  by  the  electors  of  the  New  England  town.  Our 
system  recognizes  the  fact  that  the  United  States  is  democratic 
in  its  principles.  By  democratic  I  mean  democratic  in  the  broad 
sense,  in  the  fact  that  we  recognize  the  people  as  the  source  of 
power,  and  regard  the  public  otificial  as  their  representative 
pledged   to   carry   out   their  will. 

The  Galveston  plan  of  government  does  not  contain  the 
checks  and  balances  incorporated  in  the  Des' Moines  plan,  and  is 
not  as  democratic  in  character.     I  believe  that  the  changes  made 


46  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

in  the  Galveston  charter  by  the  Des  Moines  plan  law  infinitely 
improves  the  system  and  practically  prevents  the  abuses  incident 
to  a  bureaucratic  system. 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening  Gazette.     March    25,  1909. 

Commends    Commission    Plan.     E.     R.    Sherman. 

The  commission  plan  was  adopted  in  Cedar  Rapids  at  a  spe- 
cial election  held  in  December,  1907,  and  went  into  effect  April 
6,  1908.  Little  interest  was  taken  in  this  election.  Only  a  minor- 
ity of  the  voters  took  the  trouble  to  go  to  the  polls  and  the  prop- 
osition was  carried  by  but  2;^  votes.  If  it  were  to  come  up  in 
Cedar  Rapids  tomorrow  on  the  question  of  going  back  to  the 
old  plan,  I  believe  that  there  would  be  a  vote  of  85  per  cent  in 
favor  of  the  retention  of  the  commission  law.  The  people  are  in- 
terested in  it — they  see  that  things  are  being  done,  that  there  is 
a  responsible  head  to  city  affairs;  that  their  money  is  being  ex- 
pended with  a  view  to  economy  and  results;  that  they  are  being 
constantly  informed  as  to  the  progress  of  the  city's  business — 
in  short,  that  their  municipal  government  is  now  a  purely  busi- 
ness proposition,  and  with  this  condition  has  come  a  general 
awakening  as  to  civic  affairs  among  all  classes.  It's  a  favorable 
sign  when  the  voters  take  the  time  and  trouble  to  keep  them- 
selves informed  as  to  the  movement  of  municipal  matters.  The 
commission  plan  law  has  done  more  to  awaken  civic  pride  in 
Cedar  Rapids  since  last  April  than  all  that  happened  during  the 
more  than  fifty  years  that  the  city  was  operated  under  its  special 
charter. 

Immediately  after  taking  office  a  careful  examination  of  all 
books  and  records  was  made  by  experts,  and  as  soon  as  possible 
the  people  of  Cedar  Rapids  were  given  something  they  had  never 
had  before ,  a  full,  complete,  and  absolutely  correct  statement  of 
the  financial  condition  of  the  city.  It  was  found  that  the  outgo- 
ing administration  had  expended  of  1908  funds,  between  January 
ist  and  April  6th,  1908,  the  sum  of  $119,639.12,  in  addition  to 
about  $5,000  expended  by  the  board  of  park  commissioners  dur- 
ing  the    same    period.     This   expenditure    of    about   $40,000   per 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  47 

month,  if  continued  throughout  the  year,  would  have  added  ap- 
proximately $150,000  to  the  city's  debt.  That  the  1908  funds  re- 
maining were  conserved  excellently  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that 
on  January  i,  1909,  there  were  no  warrants  outstanding  unpaid, 
every  obligation  had  been  met  promptly,  (the  current  bills  hav- 
ing been  cleaned  up  each  week  and  discounted  two  per  cent  for 
cash,  the  same  as  any  business  house)  and  there  remaining  a  bal- 
ance in  every  fund  in  the  treasurer's  hands. 

During  these  months  the  sum  of  $61,980  was  paid  for  the  re- 
tirement of  bonds  and  for  interest;  extensive  park  improvements 
were  made;  additional  park  property  was  purchased;  the  police 
department  was  augmented  by  five  patrolmen;  the  fire  depart- 
ment stables  were  replenished,  apparatus  repaired  and  rebuilt, 
two  stations  re-roofed  and  all  of  them  repainted;  a  fine  new 
brick  station  costing  $6,000  was  brought  nearly  to  completion- 
it  was  occupied  February  ist;  the  members  of  the  police  .rnd 
fire  departments  were  fitted  out  in  the  best  of  new  uniforms;  the 
streets  and  pavements  were  cleaned  and  repaired  as  never  be- 
fore in  the  history  of  the  city;  the  greatest  amount  of  brick 
paving,  macadam  road  laying,  cement  walks  and  curb  construc- 
tion, sewer  building  and  water  main  extensions  the  city  has  ever 
known  in  one  season,  was  accomplished;  the  work  of  re-estab- 
lishing the  lines  of  the  river  front  was  prosecuted;  the  prelimi- 
nary arrangements  for  a  new  concrete  bridge,  600  feet  in  length 
and  costing  approximately  $75,000  across  the  Cedar  river,  and 
other  minor  bridge  work,  was  completed;  Charles  Mulford  Rob- 
inson, civic  improvement  expert,  was  brought  to  Cedar  Rapids 
to  investigate  and  report  on  the  city's  needs,  and  following  out 
his  numerous  suggestions,  certain  streets  have  been  extended, 
street  signs  have  been  erected,  neat  waste  paper  receptacles  of 
approved  design  have  been  placed  on  the  business  streets,  certain 
street  parkways  have  been  established,  and  most  important  and 
noteworthy  of  all,  we  have  accomplished  the  purchase  for  park 
and  public  building  purposes  of  an  island  of  some  six  acres'  area, 
lying  in  the  Cedar  river,  in  the  very  heart  of  the  city.  This 
island,  which  is  between  and  immediately  adjacent  to  the  busi- 
ness section  of  both  east  and  west  sides,  has  for  many  years 
1)een  a  municipal  disgrace.     Tenanted  in  large  part  by  unsightly 


48  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

shacks,  and  made  a  dumping  ground  for  all  manner  of  rubbish, 
it  has  been  the  cause  of  unfavorable  comment  on  the  part  of  all. 
At  various  times  in  the  past,  efforts  had  been  made  to  secure 
this  island  for  public  purposes,  but  these  efforts  had  all  met  with 
failure.  It  has  remained  for  the  commission  plan  to  accomplish 
that  which  was  impossible  under  the  old  council  system.  The 
city  ofifices  are  now  occupying  temporary  quarters  on  the  island, 
and  as  soon  as  spring  opens,  the  work  of  improving  and  parking 
the  island  will  be  commenced.  In  due  time,  the  people  of  Cedar 
Rapids  will  erect  suitable  buildings  on  that  island,  and  in  the 
years  to  come  Cedar  Rapids  will  be  unique  in  being  the  posses- 
sor of  a  civic  center,  the  like  of  which  is  owned  by  no  other 
city  in  the  country. 

In  the  face  of  all  this  extraordinary  activity,  we  have  reduced 
the  tax  levy  for  this  year  one  mill,  and  plan  to  make  a  further 
reduction  in  1910. 

There  have  been  other  and  widely  diverse  matters  that  have  re- 
ceivd  attention.  The  taxpayers  are  now  given,  on  the  first  day 
of  each  month,  a  detailed  financial  statement,  showing  all  re- 
ceipts and  expenditures — from  whom,  to  whom,  and  what  for, 
of  city  money  during  the  previous  month,  and  with  this  is  in- 
cluded a  balance  sheet,  so  that  every  one  who  desires  may  know, 
at  all  times,  the  exact  condition  of  the  city's  finances.  The  peo- 
ple also  have,  in  pamphlet  form,  a  complete  summary  of  the 
council  proceedings.  Public  funds  now  draw  interest  from  the 
banks  where  deposited,  the  city's  income  from  this  source  being 
nearly  $2,000  since  last  April. 

The  police  department  has  been  reorganized — not  by  whole- 
safe  discharge  of  men,  but  by  the  injection  of  needed  discipline, 
and  in  some  unaccountable  manner  the  city's  cash  revenues 
from  the  police  court  and  department  have  jumped  from  an  av- 
erage of  about  $75  per  month  last  year,  to  something  like  $700 
per  month  under  the  new  plan,  while  there  has  been  no  material 
increase  in  the  number  of  arrests.  The  baggage  wagons,  hacks 
and  other  contributors  to  the  city  treasury  now  pay  their  license 
fees  or  go  out  of  business;  laws  regulating  meat  and  milk  inspec- 
tion have  been  enforced,  and  the  gambling  fraternity  moved 
their  apparatus  out  of  town  on  the  8th  of  last  April,  and  as  yet 
they  have  not  deemed  it  wise  to  bring  it  back. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  49 

Cedar  Rapids  Evening   Gazette.     March  31,   1909. 

Commission   Plan  in   Cedar  Rapids.     Charles  D.  Huston. 

The  commission  plan  of  government  act,  exceptionally  good 
in  the  main,  recognized  certain  principles  necessary  to  the  suc- 
cessful conduct  of  city  afifairs. 

In  drafting  the  Iowa  commission  form  of  government  act,  it 
was  given  out  by  the  framers  that  the  purposes  were: 

First — They  wished  to  create  a  municipal  ofifice  having  such 
attractive  features  that  it  would  prove  an  inducement  to  repre- 
sentative men  to  seek  political  recognition.  They  also  wished  to 
eliminate  those  objectional  features  in  politics  which  have  here- 
tofore been  the  means  of  squelching  the  political  ambitions  of 
desirable  men  and  to  destroy,  as  far  as  possible,  the  opportuni- 
ties for  the  political  parasite  who  seeks  office  not  for  the  purpose 
of  benefiting  the  people,  but  for  the  purpose  of  personal  aggran- 
dizement. 

Second — The  second  object  in  view  was  to  vest  complete  gov- 
ernmental authority  in  a  small,  deliberative  body,  consisting  of 
a  mayor  and  four  councilmen. 

Third — The  third  object  was  to  simplify  the  present  complex 
municipal  system  so  we  might  dispense  with  municipal  boards, 
committees  and  departments  with  their  over-lapping  and  conflict- 
ing duties.  They  also  wished  to  substitute  for  the  confusion 
resulting  from  a  divided  authority,  a  fixed  and  definite  responsi- 
bility upon  each  official  for  every  act  of  the  administration. 

Fourth — The  fourth  object  in  view  was  to  establish  a  more 
democratic  form  of  city  government  and  to  provide  the  means 
whereby  the  power  of  the  people  might  be  greatly  extended  and 
their  control  over  municipal  affairs  rendered  more  effective. 

The  adoption  of  this  plan  was  ratified  by  the  voters  of  Cedar 
Rapids  December  2nd,  1907,  and  under  this  plan  a  mayor  and 
four  councilmen  were  elected  March  30th,  1908. 

The  basic  and  underlying  principles  of  the  commission  plan 
as  we  view  it  are: 

1.  Concentration  of  executive  authority  and  fixing  of  respon- 
sibility. 

2.  Elimination  of  parties  and  politics. 


'SO  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

3.  Direct  nomination  by  the  people. 

'  4.  An  open  field  to  all  aspirants. 

5.  Preferential  voting — election  by  majority. 

6.  The  initiative  and  referendum. 

7.  The   recall. 

Principle  1.  Concentration  of  executive  authority  and  fixing 
of  responsibility.  How  different  under  the  new  plan  than  under 
the  old  plan  of  committees  (generally  three),  often  with  as  many 
different  ideas  of  procedure  and  as  often  opposition  to  any  pro- 
posed improvement  unless  it  is  made  in  some  particular  ward 
or  its  equivalent  promised  before  consent  to  make  it  is  secured, 
and  a  needed  work  long  delayed,  if  made  at  all,  no  matter  how 
urgent.  Under  the  commission  plan  there  is  no  delay.  If  a 
certain  improvement  is  needed,  is  recommended  by  the  head  of 
the  department  under  which  it  properly  belongs,  it  is  made  re- 
gardless of  what  section  of  the  city  it  is  in.  It  becomes  a  matter 
to  be  treated  wholly  on  its  merit  and  no  commission  will  take 
the  responsibility  of  recommending  an  expenditure  or  even  one 
piece  of  work  of  which  the  wisdom  may  be  questioned,  and 
thus  subject  himself  to  discipline  by  being  shifted  to  another 
department  and  another  being  placed  in  charge  to  conserve  the 
best  interests  of  the  public.  As  a  commissioner  in  charge  of  a 
particular  department  he  must  and  does  take  the  responsibility 
of  that  department.  The  excuses  made  by  derelict  aldermen  un- 
der the  old  plan  that  the  other  members  of  the  committee  over- 
rode him  cannot  be  offered  under  this.     He  must  make  good. 

Principle  2.  Elimination  of  partisan  politics.  The  plan  is 
certainly  most  successful  in  this  respect.  The  form  of  the  ballot 
is  ideal,  without  party  columns,  and  without  a  brand  or  trade- 
mark to  appeal  to  the  partisan,  thus  forcing  every  candidate  to 
stand  on  his  merit  and  reputation. 

Principle  3.  Direct  nomination  by  the  people.  The  system 
by  nomination  by  petition  eliminates  the  political  boss,  whether 
acting  in  'his  own  behalf  or  for  special  interests.  It  effectively 
eliminates  the  political  parasites  who  live  by  robbing  the  peo- 
ple and  may  in  time  put  them  to  work.  The  nominations 
are  made  at  the  polls  under  such  restrictions  as  govern  general 
elections.     Those  who  attend  caucuses  and  who  have  observed 


MUNICITAL  GOVERNMENT  51 

at  some  time  or  another  the  manner  in  which  caucuses  have  been 
manipulated  for  selfish  ends,  the  good  intentions  of  the  majority 
often  being  thwarted  by  a  cunningly  devised  motion  which  took 
out  of  the  hands  of  the  people  the  selecting  of  delegates  and 
placed  it  in  the  hands  of  those  who  named  delegates  to  vote  for 
candidates  or  measures  inimical  to  their  best  interests,  will  not 
be  slow  to  recognize  the  privilege  secured  to  them  of  expressing 
their  preferences  personally,  at  the  primaries. 

Principle  4.  An  open  field  to  all  aspirants.  Many  men  capa- 
ble of  rendering  good  service  to  a  municipality,  would  never  be 
able  under  the  caucus  system,  to  get  their  names  before  the  peo- 
ple, owing  to  the  manipulations  of  so-called  ward  bosses,  who 
delegate  to  themselves  from  year  to  year  the  privilege  of  making 
a  "slate"  and  seeing  that  it  is  carried  out.  Under  the  commission 
plan,  any  one  can  secure  a  petition  and  have  his  name  appear  on 
the  ballot  to  be  voted  for  at  the  primary,  and  every  citizen  has 
an  equal  opportunity  before  the  voters.  To  demonstrate  how 
popular  this  plan  is,  we  have  but  to  mention  the  fact  that  fifty- 
seven  citizens  took  advantage  of  this  provision  at  the  election 
in  Cedar  Rapids  last  March,  nine  for  mayor  and  forty-eight  for 
councilmen,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  but  ten  could  qualify 
and  but  five  of  the  ten  could  be  elected.  Under  this  provision 
the  people  are  given  two  opportunities  to  approve  or  disapprove 
an  aspirant  for  civic  position — once  at  the  primaries  and  once 
at  the  general  election.  The  man  who  thus  passes  inspection 
may  be  considered  well  worthy  to  entrust  with  the  responsibility 
of  government. 

Principal  5.  Preferential  voting — election  by  majority.  Mi- 
nority election  like  minority  rule  is  wrong  in  principle.  Under 
the  commission  plan  no  one  can  be  elected  either  mayor  or  coun- 
cilman unless  he  secures  a  clear  majority  of  all  votes  cast,  thus 
there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  his  being  the  choice  of  the  electorate. 
Under  the  old  system  vicious  and  ''undesirable  citizens"  have 
been  frequently  elected  according  to  well  verified  reports  from 
San  Francisco,  St.  Louis,  Chicago,  Philadelphia,  Pittsburg  and 
perhaps  occasionally  in  peerless  Iowa.  Some  of  those  consider- 
ed in  the  '"undesirable"  class  may  have  been  fairly  representative 
of  their  ward  constituents  but  not  of  the  city  as  a  whole,  and 


52  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

their  power  for  evil  in  a  council  has  been  great.  As  a  con- 
crete example  we  have  but  to  refer  to"Bath  House  John"  and 
"Hinky  Dink,"  who  have  held  unbroken  sway  in  their  wards 
for  many  years  and  their  influence  has  to  be  reckoned  with  al- 
ways. They  are  not  only  a  power  in  the  wards  from  which 
they  come,  but  being  aggressive  and  ever  at  work  their  influence 
is  felt  in  every  department  of  the  city.  Clean  handed  men  (not 
so  "practical"  as  they)  shun  the  notoriety  of  a  contest  with 
them,  while  others  who  have  exposed  their  methods  to  public 
criticism  and  scorn  have  been  retired  for  their  temerity,  and 
what  is  the  result?  Chicago  is  known  the  world  over  as  one 
of  the  most  corrupt  and  vicious  of  cities — not  because  a  ma- 
jority wants  it  so,  but  because  a  minority  wills  it  so.  These 
men  are  elected  because  of  the  ward  system,  not  because  of 
their  fitness,  but  in  spite  of  their  unfitness.  There  is  not  a 
city  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  if  its  affairs  were  administered 
under  the  commission  plan  similar  to  that  of  the  Iowa  plan, 
where  such  men  as  the  "Bath  House"  or  "Hinky  Dink"  would 
know  they  had  been  in  the  running — and  the  plan  should  be  gen 
erally  adopted  if  it  had  no  other  redeeming  feature.  But  it  has 
others  and  many.  The  abandonment  of  ward  lines,  means  the 
substitution  of  a  majority  form  of  government  for  a  minority 
form  of  government.  Under  this  plan  no  longer  will  our  city's 
affairs  be  managed  by  a  council  of  ten,  the  fitness  of  seven  or 
more  than  two-thirds  of  whom  have  not  been  approved  by  the 
voters.  Under  this  plan  the  mayor  and  council  are  as  they 
should  be,  the  personal  representatives  of  each  and  every  citi- 
zen and  personally  accountable  to  them  all  for  the  economic  and 
successful  administration  of  the  city's  affairs. 

Principle  6.  The  initiative  and  referendum — the  application 
of  this  principle  places  upon  the  people  themselves  the  respon- 
sibility of  government  where  it  rightfully  belongs.  The  initia- 
tive and  referendum  are  the  most  efficient  weapons  of  protec- 
tion for  the  people — an  insurance  policy  as  it  were  against  graft. 
In  providing  the  referendum,  the  commission  plan  trusts  the 
people  to  pass  upon  great  questions  of  public  concern  by  taking 
the  power  to  grant  special  privileges  out  of  the  hands  of  the 
council  and  vesting  it  in  the  hands  of  the  people,  those  who  are 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  53 

the  rightful  owners,  and  who  are  and  who  should  be  entitled 
to  say  whethe  they  shall  or  shall  not  be  granted.  This  means 
the  elimination  and  does  eliminate  corporate  influences  in  the 
selection  of  councilmen,  because  councilmen  will  no  longer  be 
able  to  "deliver  the  goods"  bargained  for.  It  leaves  the  people 
free  to  dispose  of  their  own,  as  they  see  fit,  instead  of  as  un- 
der the  old  plan,  delegating  the  power  to  a  few  who  might  be 
unscrupulous  enough  to  use  it  for  the  furtherance  of  selfish 
ambition.  This  is  a  provision  that  should  never  be  eliminated — 
the  people  should  not  permit  it,  and  honest  public  service  cor- 
porations should  demand  its  retention.  An  efifort  to  get  away 
from  this  provision  on  the  part  of  utility  companies  who  exact 
large  remuneration  for  poor  service  will  but  fully  convince 
the  public  that  the  commission  plan  was  adopted  none  too  soon. 
But  a  company  that  is  honest  with  itself  and  with  its  patrons, 
that  accepts  the  provisions  of  this  act  gracefully,  gives  good 
service  may  exact  liberal  compensation  therefor,  and  yet  so  en- 
dear itself  to  the  public  that  it  may  secure  from  it  the  most 
liberal  treatment. 

Principle  7.  The  recall — this  gives  to  the  people  the  rightful 
power  to  discharge  an  incompetent,  dishonest  or  unfaithful 
servant  at  any  time  as  an  individual  has  the  right  to  do. 

A  careful  review  of  the  commission  act  will  convince  the 
most  pessimistic  that  its  provision  will  insure  a  city  the  most 
democratic  form  of  government  ever  known.  The  act  provides 
for  the  city  every  principle  and  safeguard  that  has  been  ad- 
vocated by  anyone.  It  gives  the  people  absolute  control,  and 
through  the  initiative,  referendum  and  recall,  they  may,  if  they 
wish,  pass  upon  all  acts  of  the  administration.  To  question  the 
ability  of  the  people  to  use  it  in  their  own  interests  is  to  ques- 
tion their  ability  for  self-government.  But,  should  the  people 
even  make  a  failure  of  it  in  some  cities,  they  will  nevertheless 
govern  themselves  more  economically  and  more  efficiently  than 
the  political  "'bosses"  have  exercised  in  governing  them  under 
the  present  system.  Cities  have  nothing  to  lose  and  everything 
to  gain  in  adopting  this  plan. 


54  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

Cedar  Rapids  Republican.     November  3,  1907. 

Cost  of  Commission  Plan. 

The  esteemed  Optimus  continues  to  parade  the  fact  that 
whereas  the  present  mayor  and  ten  aldermen  cost  only  $2,500  a 
year,  the  five  commissioners  will  cost  the  taxpayers  $9,500  a 
year.  That  is  inconsequential.  We  believe  that  the  Optimus- 
itself  is  in  favor  of  a  board  of  public  works,  of  three  men. 
Those  three  men  would  eat  up  most  of  the  difiference. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  under  the  commission  system  fewer  men 
will  be  employed  in  the  city  hall.  It  would  not  take  a  great  deal 
of  effort  to  show  that  instead  of  there  being  $7,000  against  the 
new  plan  there  will  be  a  large  balance  in  favor  of  it. 

But,  above  all,  there  would  be  the  results  of  concentration 
of  power  and  responsibility.  Five  men  devoting  all  their  time 
to  the  city,  and  looking  after  every  department  and  every  detail, 
would  easily  be  worth  to  the  taxpayers,  $7,000  more  than  the 
eleven  men  who  now  give  a  few  hours  a  day,  or  a  week  to  the 
city.  Cedar  Rapids  is  big  enough  as  a  business  proposition  to 
have  five  men  devote  all  their  time  to  its  afifairs.  What  set  of 
business  men  would  think  of  spending  a  third  of  a  million  dol- 
lars annually,  without  such  ample   supervision? 

On  the  question  of  finances,  we  believe  that  the  present  taxes 
could  be  reduced  25  per  cent,  if  we  apply  in  the  whole  city  some 
of  the  methods  that  are  now  employed  in  the  park  commission. 
There  is  no  argument  against  the  commission  plan  on  the  finan- 
cial side,  but  the  argument  is  all  in  its  favor. 

Cedar    Rapids    Republican.      November    7,    1907. 

Interest   in   the    Commission    Plan. 

The  commission  plan  of  government,  on  which  the  people  of 
this  city  will  vote  in  the  near  future,  is  making  headway  every- 
where. In.  Sioux  City  they  are  now  circulating  petitions  for 
the  calling  of  the  special  election.  The  Sioux  City  News  says 
that  90  per  cent  of  the  men  who  have  been  asked  to  sign  the 
petitions  have  signed.    The  desire  there  is  almost  unanimous,  in 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  55 

spite  of  the  opposition  of  Mayor  Sears  and  some  of  the  aldermen 
in  that  city.  Why  they  should  oppose  it,  is  hard  to  say.  They 
ought  to  be  foremost  in  working  for  the  improvement  of  the  city 
governments. 

In  Soux  City  they  are  confident  that  the  new  plan  will  'have 
a  walk  away.  But  Cedar  Rapids  has  gotten  ahead  of  Sioux  City, 
being  the  second  in  the  state  to  get  ready  to  take  advantage  of 
the  wise  law  passed  on  this  subject. 

The  provisions  of  the  commission  law  have  been  admirably 
summarized  by  James  M.  Head  of  Boston,  as  follows: 

1.  It  makes  the  whole  city  instead  of  the  ward  the  political 
imit. 

2.  It  concentrates  and  iixes  responsibility  in  the  hands  of  a 
few  men  chosen  by  the  whole  city. 

3.  It  recognizes  to  the  fullest  extent  the  principles  of  local 
self-government,  places  the  responsibility  upon  the  people,  and 
forces  the  people  to  govern  themselves. 

4.  It  educates  the  people  in  all  governmental  matters. 

5.  It  does  away  with  partisan  politics  in  purely  business  and 
local  matters. 

6.  It  makes  honesty  and  efficiency  in  office  and  fidelity  to 
the  public  interest,  instead  of  fidelity  to  a  political  "Boss"  the 
guaranty  of  official  security  and  future  preferment. 

7.  It  makes  the  representative  careful  of  his  conduct  since 
it  must  be  approved  by  the  people  before  it  becomes  effective. 

8.  It  effectually  destroys  the  political  "Boss"  by  rendering 
it  impossible  for  him  to  deliver  the  goods  bargained  for,  since  the 
initiative,  the  referendum  and  the  recall  may  at  any  moment  take 
away  from  him  that  for  which  he  has  agreed  to  pay. 

9.  It  gives  us  in  fact  and  not  merely  in  name  "a  govern- 
ment of  the  people  by  the  people  and  for  the  people." 

Every  one  of  these  nine  reasons,  in  the  summary,  is  an  argu- 
ment for  the  new  plan. 

Some  of  those  who  oppose  the  commission  plan  are  banking 
a  great  deal  on  what  they  call  the  Bohemian-American,  Irish- 
American  and  German-American  votes.  They  count  on  these 
three  elements  in  our  population  to  be  unanimously  against  the 
new  plan,   on   the   theory  that   it   is   un-American.    We   do   not 


56  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

believe  that  the  claims  of  the  opponents  of  the  measure  are  cor- 
rect. We  do  not  beheve  that  the  elements  referred  to  are  going- 
to  be  unanimously  against  what  is  designed  to  be  an  improve- 
ment in  the  form  of  city  governments.  We  believe  that  a  great 
many  of  the  men  claimed  to  be  against  it  are  really  in  favor  of 
giving  the  plan  a  trial.  They  have  property  interests,  as  well  as 
interests  as  taxpayers. 

Circle.   2:   289-90.    November,    1907. 

Spread  of  the  Galveston  Plan.     Brand  Whitlock. 

Des  Moines  has  gone  ahead  of  Galveston  ;  she  has  all  that 
Galveston  has — so  far  as  charters  go — and  more ;  she  has  a 
system  that  is  far  more  democratic,  far  more  radical  than  Gal- 
veston, or  any  other  city  in  the  United  States,  for  that  matter. 
Des  Moines  has  abolished  wards,  and  boards,  and  all  that,  and 
has  a  commission  like  Galveston,  in  which  the  legislative,  ad 
ministrative  and  executive  functions  are  all  centered ;  but  she  has 
other  things,  more  democratic  things.  She  has  the  recall,  the 
initiative  and  referendum,  including  the  compulsory  reference 
of  all  franchises  to  the  people.  This  is  the  great  achievement 
of  Des  Moines ;  here,  at  last,  is  a  chance  for  real  democracy. 
If  the  board  passes  an  ordinance  which  is  not  to  the  satisfaction 
of  the  people,  they  can  compel  its  reference  to  them;  they  can 
vote  on  it,  and  either  approve  or  disapprove  it.  This  is  the 
veto  power  retained  by  the  people  themselves — far  better  than 
the  veto  power  in  the  hands  of  a  mayor,  or  even  of  a  governor. 
The  people,  too,  if  the  board  will  not  pass  such  legislation  as 
the  people  want,  can  themselves  initiate  such  legislation ;  this 
is  the  old  New  England  town  meeting  on  a  large  scale;  and  if 
any  of  the  commissioners  is  faithless  to  his  duty  or  his  trust, 
the  people  may  recall  him;  that  is,  remove  and  discharge  him — 
far  better  and  safer  and  more  democratic  than  to  have  the  re- 
moval power  in  the  hands  of  a  governor. 

And  then,  too,  the  provision  that  all  franchises  be  submitted 
to  the  people  before  they  become  effective  is  of  inestimable  ad- 
vantage.   A    street-car    company    can    buy    aldermen,    it    might 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  57- 

buy  a  mayor,  it  might  even  buy  a  commissioner,  for  a  man's 
official  title  does  not  change  him;  but  it  cannot  buy  the  people 
of  a  city;  the  people  are  not  grafters.  The  way  to  eliminate 
graft  is  to  eliminate  the  public-service  corporations  from  the 
control  of  politics.  For,  startling  as  the  information  may  be  to 
many,  public  officials  who  are  bribed  do  not  bribe  themselves; 
the  boodle  came  from  somewhere — it  came  from  the  street  car 
company,  and  the  electric  light  and  power  company;  that  is, 
from  the  eminently  respectable  gentlemen  who  own  the  stock 
and  bonds,  and  collect  the  dividends  and  interest  of  these  com-- 
panics — a  piece  of  information,  by  the  way,  it  might  be  inter- 
esting for  certain  brave  and  heroic  prosecuting  attorneys  to 
know,  for  with  few  exceptions  we  have  yet  to  hear  of  any 
of  them  really  prosecuting  the  real  givers  of  the  bribe.  Per- 
haps, if  any  of  the  eminently  respectable  providers  of  graft 
money  were  to  stand  before  a  court  in  their  "moral  nakedness," 
to  use  the  recent  picturesque  expression  of  a  judge  who  was 
lacking  in  a  sense  of  humor,  they  might  appear  to  quite  as  great 
a  disadvantage  as  any  of  the  unlovely  bribe-takers,  as,  indeed, 
any  one  might  who  should  stand  in  like  spiritual  nudity  in  any 
place  other  than  before  the  mirror  of  his  own  conscience. 

Another  provision,  and  perhaps  the  most  important  in  the 
Des  Moines  charter  is  that  which  provides  for  non-partisan 
nominations  and  elections  of  municipal  officers.  Out  there  they 
have  adopted  and  incorporated  into  their  charter  Golden  Rule 
Jones'  principle  that  a  city  official  should  be  chosen  with  refer- 
ence to  his  views  on  city  questions,  and  not  on  state  or  national 
questions.  The  party  system,  carried  down  into  the  cities,  has 
been  the  real  bulwark  of  municipal  corruption  and  inefficiency. 
A  party  boss  will  subscribe  to  any  view  on  the  tarifif,  provided 
you  permit  him  to  tell  you  whom  to  vote  for.  Party  bosses 
and  party  machines  and  franchise  corporations  and  all  their 
pitiful  parasites  have  long,  in  reality,  been  non-partisan;  now 
that  the  people  are  becoming  non-partisan,  they  will  come  into 
their  own. 

The  Des  Moines  plan  seems  to  me  defective  in  one  way, 
and  that  is  that  by  it  men  have  to  become  candidates  themselves, 
^nd  this  is  not  altogether  in  the  spirit  of  real  democracy.     The 


S8  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

people  should  propose  their  own  nominees  by  petition ;  but  the 
Des  Moires  plan  in  recognizing  the  principle  of  non-partisan- 
ship in  municipal  affairs  has  struck  the  key-note  of  real  reform. 
.  These  movements  in  the  west  show  the  unmistakable  drift 
of  the  times;  the  movement,  at  last,  is  not  away  from  the  people, 
but  toward  the  people ;  they  are  coming  into  their  own.  What 
American  cities  need  is  government  that  will  represent  the 
people;  when  they  have  that,  they  will  have  good  government, 
because  at  heart  the  people  are  good.  To  be  sure,  in  Emer- 
son's words,  "Laws  do  not  make  the  city";  the  people  make  the 
city,  and  when  they  have  laws  that  record  their  will,  they  have 
order  as  a  result ;  and  all  these  schemes — the  initiative,  the  ref- 
erendum, the  recall,  non-partisan  nominations,  and  the  rest- 
place  the  governmental  power  where  it  belongs,  in  the  people's 
hands.  The  commission  plan,  with  these  things  added,  concen- 
trates power  and  imposes  the  corresponding  responsibility;  when 
things  go  wrong,  the  people  know  whom  to  blame,  and  they  have 
at  hand  an  effective  remedy. 

There  is  a  plan  known  as  the  federal  plan,  tried  in  Cleve- 
land, years  ago,  which  is  also  excellent.  Under  that  plan  the 
people  elected  a  council  and  a  mayor;  the  council  had  the  legis- 
lative power,  and  the  mayor  the  administrative  and  executive 
functions,  appointing  directors  of  departments  to  administer  the 
city's  affairs,  just  as  the  president  appoints  his  cabinet.  This 
plan  was  simple  and  effective,  responsibility  was  easily  fixed,  and 
it  carried  the  power  that,  in  fairness,  should  accompany  all  re- 
sponsibility. But  it  fell  short  in  that  the  party  system  remained 
in  vogue  and  the  people  were  without  that  splendid  weapon  of 
democracy — the  initiative,  the  referendum,  and  the  recall.  Then, 
too,  it  retained  the  ward  divisions,  which  are  cumbrous  and  tend 
to  promote  small  local  feeling,  so  that  the  city,  as  a  whole,  is 
overlooked  and  lost  to  sight.  Had  it  possessed  these  other 
things,  and  the  merit  system,  it  might  have  solved  more  of  the 
problems  of  municipal  government  than  it  has. 

But  it  is  evident  that  Galveston  and  Des  Moines  and  Cleve- 
land have  pointed  the  way.  What  they  have  done,  all  cities 
can  do  and  will  do.  For  one  city  is  all  cities;  they  are  all  alike 
in  essentials,  just  as  people  are;  they  have  their  individualities. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  59 

and  their  special  needs  and  little  differences;  but,  in  the  large 
sense,  they  are  all  alike. 

And  so  we  may  say  that,  so  far  as  charters  and  paper  laws 
go,  the  way  to  municipal  reform  lies  along  these  lines: 

1.  A  charter  that  provides  simply  and  directly  for  a  few 
responsible  officials,  with  a  mayor  and  a  small  legislative  or 
councilmanic  board  chosen  from  the  city  at  large  without  ref- 
erence to  wards. 

2.  Non-partisan  nominations  and  elections. 

3.  The  initiative  and  the  referendum,  including  the  sub- 
mission of  all  franchises  to  the  people. 

4.  The  recall. 

5.  The  merit  system  for  all  employes  other  than  heads  of 
departments;  and,  most  important  of  all, 

6.  Home  rule  on  all  subjects  of  purely  local  nature,  the 
right  of  taxation,  and  the  police  power  so  far  as  purely  local. 

With  such  a  charter  a  city  would  be  free  to  realize  itself; 
it  would  be  a  city  for  the  people;  it  would  be  a  city  in  which 
each  man  would  have  a  chance  to  develop  his  own  life  and  pow- 
ers ;  it  would  be  a  city  in  which,  above  all,  special  privilege,  the 
great  foe  to  equality  and  brotherhood,  would  be  abolished.  It 
would  be,  in  a  word,  a  democratic — an  American — city.  Of 
course,  the  law  is  not  all;  it  is  not  even  first.  Good  and  wise  peo- 
ple can  get  along  better  with  bad 'laws  than  bad  people  can  get 
along  under  good  and  wise  laws.  The  people  are  everything.  As 
Walt  Whitman  says:  "The  greatest  city  is  that  which  has  the 
greatest  men  and  women.  It  may  be  but  a  few  ragged  ruts;  it 
is  still  the  greatest  city  in  the  whole  world."  But  with  the  peo- 
ple themselves  in  power  and  the  right  law,  the  American  city 
will  speedily  become  the  ideal  city  of  which  men  have  dreamed 
since  time  began. 

Citizen's  Bulletin  (Cincinnati).  6:  i.  April  18,  1908. 

Galveston's  Commission  Plan.    Edmund  R.  Cheesborough. 

The  Galveston  commission  government  began  September  18, 
1901.  At  that  time  the  city  was  practically  bankrupt;  its  tax- 
able   values    were    greatly    reduced;    it   owed    a    heavy    floating 


6o  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

debt  in  the  shape  of  script  issued  for  current  bills;  the  City 
Hall,  waterworks  station,  and  some  of  the  fire  engine  houses 
were  in  ruins  and  the  street  paving  in  wretched  condition.  One 
of  the  first  acts  of  the  board  was  to  secure  the  services  of 
three  eminent  engineers,  Messrs.  Noble,  Robert,  and  Ripley,  for 
the  preparation  of  plans  for  the  protection  of  the  city  from 
calamitous  overflow.  Their  report  called  for  a  seawall  to  cost 
$1,500,000  and  the  raise  of  the  grade  of  the  city  at  a  cost  of 
$2,000,000.  The  county  built  the  seawall  and  the  city  raised  the 
grade.  Galveston  county  has  also  just  issued  $500,000  bonds  for 
its  share  of  the  cost  of  a  $1,400,000  causeway  to  connect  the 
island  with  the  mainland.  Eighty-five  per  cent  of  the  taxable 
values  of  Galveston  county  are  located  in  the  city  of  Galveston, 
hence  the  entire  burden  of  taxation  falls  largely  upon  the  city 
proper. 

Galveston's  Tax  Rate 

The  tax  rate  for  city  purposes  in  1907  was  $1.60  and  state 
and  county  purposes,  $1.16^.  Valuations  for  assessing  purposes 
are  quite  reasonable,  and  notwithstanding  Galveston's  experi- 
ence and  accomplishments,  its  taxes  are  lower  than'  any  large 
city  in  Texas. 

The  next  step  of  the  commission  was  to  get  the  majority 
of  the  bondholders  to  accept  2I/2  per  cent  interest  instead  of 
5   per  cent  for  a  period   of  five  years. 

The  taxpayers  were  the  beneficiaries  of  this  compromise, 
not  the  city,  as  the  tax  levy  was  reduced  accordingly.  Out  of 
current  revenues  from  date  of  their  inauguration  into  ofiice  and 
up  to  February  29,  1908,  the  city  commission  has  paid  for  the 
following  extraordinary  expenses: 

Floating  debt,  inherited  from   Aldermen $157,000.00 

Brick  pavement  on  sand  foundation,  at  $1.40  per  yard  170,000.00 

Shell    roads    135.000.00 

Storm  drains   100,000.00 

Repairs  to  City  Hall,  new  engine  house,  new  waterworks 

station  and  pumping  plant 70,000.00 

Total $632,000.00 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  6r 

The  commission  has  paid  off  and  canceled  $461,953.70  of 
the  regular  bonded  debt.  It  has  taken  care  of  very  heavy  expenses 
in  raising  water  mains  and  pipes  in  the  grade-raising  area  and  in 
putting  in  new  screens  in  the  artesian  wells  from  which  the  city 
obtains  its  water  supply.  With  funds  received  from  sale  of 
sewer  bonds,  just  prior  to  the  advent  of  the  commission  form 
of  city  government,  $150,000  has  been  expended  in  extending 
the  sewer  system.  The  city  has  also  purchased  three  new  fire 
engines,  one  large  extension  ladder  truck,  other  equipment  and 
new  horses.  All  obligations  of  the  city  have  been  paid  in  cash, 
not  a  dollar  being  borrowed  and  not  a  bond  issued,  excepting  the 
special  issue  for  grade-raising  purposes.  The  city  maintains  a 
splendidly  equipped  public  hospital,  a  magnificent  gift  to  the 
city,  at  a  net  annual  expense  of  $30,000. 

The  financing  of  the  grade-raising  (which  cost  $2,000,000), 
with  the  aid  of  the  state,  has  been  a  splendid  achievement. 

State  Renders  Aid 

The  city  has  paid  about  $180,000  of  its  own  funds  to  meet  the 
interest  on  the  bonds  issued  for  raising  the  city  grade.  The 
state  has  granted  the  city  the  right  to  use  the  state's  part  of 
all  taxes  collected  on  property  located  in  Galveston  county  for 
a  period  of  seventeen  years.  With  the  seven  years'  taxes  so 
far  received,  the  city  has  paid  oft'  $504,000  of  the  grade-raising 
bonded  debt  and  has  on  hand,  in  advance,  one  year's  interest 
and  sinking  fund.  The  city  also  has  funds  on  hand  with  which 
to  pay  current  obligations  during  the  summer  months. 

All  departments  of  the  city  are  working  in  perfect  harmony 
and  render  efficient  service.  The  total  expenses  for  current 
purposes  for  the  coming  year  of  1908-9,  according  to  the  city 
budget,  will  be  $541,300.  This,  of  course,  does  not  include  in- 
terest and  sinking  fund.  The  city  collects  interest  on  bank  bal- 
ances from  bonded  depositors.  Collects  a  special  vehicle  tax,, 
which  goes  to  the  street  improvement  fund,  enforces  sewer  con- 
nections, has  metered  the  city's  water  service,  has  cleared  the 
sidewalks  of  fruit  stands  and  other  obstructions,  which  have  oc- 
cupied them  for  years ;  has  prosecuted  to  a  finish  all  outstand- 
ing lawsuits,   collects  taxes  promptly,  has   destroyed   the  policy 


■62  'COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

evil    and   public   gambling   and   adopted    an    ordinance    directing 
barrooms  out  of  the  residence  section. 

In  securing  the  service  of  heads  of  departments  and  em- 
ployes, the  commissioners  have  completely  ignored  political  in- 
fluence. Capacity  and  fitness  alone  have  been  considered.  Each 
commissioner  has  taken  a  deep  personal  interest  and  a  pride 
in  the  success  of  his  department. 


Citizen's  Bulletin  (Cincinnati).  7:  7.  April  10,  1909. 

Des   Moines   Plan  a  Great  Success. 

Des  Moines,  Iowa,  is  just  ending  its  first  year  under  a  com- 
mission form  of  government,  and  the  general  verdict  seems  to  be 
that  the  city  never  before  enjoyed  so  efficient  and  economical 
an  administration.  Expenses  have  been  kept  well  within  the 
regular  tax  income  as  compared  with  an  excess  of  expenditure 
in  the  last  years  of  the  old  regime.  The  merit  system  has 
been  extended,  a  new  system  of  accounting  installed,  electric 
street  lighting  rates  have  been  reduced  from  $75  to  $65,  the 
police  department  made  more  efficient,  the  so-called  red-light 
district  cleaned  up,  and  so  on.  A  dispatch  to  the  Chicago  Tri- 
bune says : — 

The  five  members  of  the  commission  receive  combined  salaries 
■of  $15,000  a  year,  and  it  is  estimated  that  enough  money  has 
been  saved  by  stopping  small  wastes,  due  to  loose  business  meth- 
ods, to  make  up  that  sum.  A  business  system  has  been  intro- 
duced in  all  departments  and  the  city  hall  has  been  changed 
from  a  loafing  place  for  politicians  to  a  place  resembling  the  of- 
fices of  a  large  business  concern.  An  entirely  new  spirit  pervades  it. 

For  twenty  years  the  city  and  the  railroads  have  been  dicker- 
ing over  the  terms  of  constructing  a  viaduct,  without  coming  to 
any  conclusion ;  under  the  commission  the  matter  has  been 
settled  and  work  is  about  to  begin  The  commission  govern- 
ment is  also  pressing  upon  the  street  railway  company  a  plan 
of  profit-sharing  with  the  city  after  the  Chicago  example,  and 
lower  rates  are  being  exacted  of  the  water  supply  company. 
The  people  of  Des  Moines  are  evidently  much  pleased  with 
their  new  form  of  government,  so  far  as  it  has  been  tried. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  63. 

Citizen's  Bulletin  (Cincinnati).  7:  7.  May  8,   1909. 

Commission  Government. 

The  extent  to  which  the  five  cities  in  Texas  having  govern- 
ment by  commission,  the  largest  places  in  that  state,  are  being 
visited  by  students  of  municipal  government  from  all  over  the 
country  is  remarkable.  A  joint  committee  from  the  Illinois 
legislature,  for  example,  consisting  of  five  senators  and  repre- 
sentatives, lately  visited  Texas,  and  have  reported  to  the  body 
which  sent  them.  Passage  in  this  report  are  of  general  in- 
terest, as  follows : — 

In  every  city  we  visited  we  found  the  almost  unanimous  senti- 
ment of  the  citizens  favoring  the  commission  form  of  government. 
The  enthusiasm  for  it  is  hardly  describable.  Extremists  have 
gone  so  far  as  to  favor  the  abolition  of  the  legislature  of  Texas 
and  substitute  therefor  a  commission  of  five  to  govern  the  state. 
Without  doubt  there  has  been  a  marked  improvement  in  the  con- 
duct of  affairs  of  the  cities.  Able,  fearless,  progressive  and  con- 
scientious men  are  in  charge  of  public  affairs.  Under  the  stim- 
ulus of  great  municipal  improvements  conducted  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  affairs  of  great  private  enterprises,  these  cities 
are  entering  upon  an  era  of  prosperity,  with  the  full  confidence 
of  their  citizens  in  the  integrity  of  their  public  officials  and  in 
the  efficiency  of  the  commission  form  of  government. 

The  spread  of  the  commission  idea  is  further  evidenced 
in  the  fact  that  Kansas  has  a  commission  law,  which  was  amend- 
ed at  the  last  session  of  the  legislature,  and  there  are  now 
five  cities  in  that  state  that  have  commission  governments. 
Perhaps  it  may  not  be  generally  realized  that  this  new  form  of 
municipal  control  has  taken  root  in  Massachusetts.  Three 
of  our  cities,  Chelsea,  Haverhill  and  Gloucester  are  experi- 
menting with  government  by  commission.  Chelsea  is  being 
rebuilt  under  a  board  of  control,  consisting  of  five  members 
appointed  by  the  governor.  The  term  of  one  member  will 
expire  next  fall,  and  his  successor  will  be  chosen  by  the  vo- 
ters. One  member  of  the  board  will  be  elected  each  year 
by  popular  vote  until  1913,  when  the  citizens  shall  decide 
whether  they  wish  to  continue  government  by  commission. 
Haverhill  and  Gloucester  are  each  governed  by  a  single  board 
of  five,  consisting  of  a  mayor  and  four  aldermen,  elected  by 
the   people. 


-64  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Citizen's  Bulletin  (Cincinnati).  7:  1-2.  July  3,  1909. 

Commission  Plan :  What  it  Means.  Ernest  S.  Bradford. 

Starting  with  Galveston,  where  the  new  system  went  into 
effect  in  1901,  the  commission  idea  spread  first  to  other  Texas 
cities.  Houston  adopted  it  in  1905,  as  already  set  forth ;  Dal- 
las followed  in  1907 ;  Fort  Worth  adopted  the  plan,  and  Denison, 
Greenville,  Sherman,  El  Paso  and  more  recently,  the  state 
capital,  Austin,  have  followed  suit.  In  nearly  every  case  the 
commissioners  are  five  in  number  and  the  general  plan  fol- 
lowed is  either  that  of  Galveston  or  Houston.  After  the 
Galveston  plan  had  been  in  operation  a  short  time,  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Texas  decided  that  that  part  of  the  law  providing 
for  three  commissioners  to  be  appointed  by  the  governor  of 
the  state,  the  other  two,  only,  to  be  elected  by  the  people,  was 
xmconstitutional,  and  that  all  must  be  elected.  After  the  Gal- 
veston charter  was  amended  to  conform  with  this  ruling, 
the  commissioners  chosen  in  other  cities  have  all  been  elective. 
For  this  reason  the  government  of  Washington  does  not  pre- 
sent the  case  of  a  commission  government,  in  the  sense  in  which 
the  term  is  used  elsewhere,  for  its  commissioners  are  not 
elected  by  the  people. 

From  Texas  the  commission  system  spread  to  Oklahoma, 
where  three  or  four  cities  have  adopted  it,  the  plan  going  into 
effect  in  Ardmore  on  April  i,  1909;  and  to  Kansas,  where 
Topeka,  Leavenworth,  Wichita  and  other  cities  have  followed 
the  example  of  Galveston.  In  Iowa,  Des  Moines,  as  already 
noted,  a  city  of  90,000,  struck  out  along  a  slightly  different 
line  adding  to  the  small  commission,  elected  at  large,  the 
other  features  of  a  recall  for  the  commissioners,  a  referendum 
on  ordinances  and  franchises,  a  non-partisan  primary  and 
election  and  a  city  civil  service.  Cedar  Rapids  is  operating 
under  the  same  state  law  as  Des  Moines ;  and  this  law  has 
been  amended  (1909)  so  as  to  permit  cities  of  7,000  to  adopt 
the  plan.  Burlington,  Davenport  and  other  towns  are  agi- 
tating the  subject,  the  successes  of  the  past  year  in  their 
neighboring  cities  having  had  a  marked  influence  on  general 
sentiment   throughout   the   municipalities   of   the   state. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  65 

It  Is  Spreading 

The  Illinois  legislature,  in  response  to  a  strong  demand 
from  Peoria,  Springfield  and  other  cities,  sent  a  committee  to 
visit  the  Texas  and  Iowa  cities  which  have  the  plan  in  force 
and  is  expected  to  pass  a  law  allowing  Illinois  municipalities 
to  adopt.  About  the  same  time,  the  people  of  St.  Paul  and 
Minneapolis  persuaded  John  MacVicar,  the  Des  Moines  Com- 
missioner of  Streets,  and  one  or  two  other  lowans  to  come 
up  and  tell  them  about  the  plan  in  force  in  Des  Moines,  with 
the  result  that  the  Minnesota  legislature  has  just  passed  (April, 
1909)  an  act  providing  for  introduction  of  the  small  Board 
system  in  cities  of  the  Gopher  state.  Both  the  Twin  Cities  are 
said  to  be  anxious  to  try  the  experiment  which  has  succeeded  so 
well  elsewhere. 

A  bill  to  the  same  effect  is  pending  in  the  Wisconsin  legis- 
lature, while  in  both  North  Dakota  and  South  Dakota  the 
law  is  already  in  force,  and  Bismarck,  Mandan  and  other 
cities  have  the  plan  well  under  way ;  and  in  Nebraska,  a  com- 
mittee of  the  Commercial  Club  of  Lincoln,  including  the  City 
Clerk  and  City  Attorney,  recently  made  an  examination  into 
the  workings  of  the  plan. 

At  the  same  time,  the  seeds  of  the  idea  have  sprung  up 
in  the  East  and  in  the  Far  West.  In  Massachusetts,  the  heme 
of  the  original  New  England  town-meeting,  Gloucester  and  Ha- 
verhill have  already  put  it  into  operation ;  in  Chelsea,  which 
adopted  the  plan  as  an  emergency  measure  after  the  fire  (1908), 
the  commission  of  five  is  appointed  by  the  governor,  instead 
of  being  elected.  A  distinguished  committee  of  the  Economic 
Club,  of  Boston,  including  Dr.  Chas.  W.  Eliot,  then  President 
of  Harvard  University;  John  D.  Long,  Harvey  N.  Shephard, 
John  Tobin  and  Harvey  S.  Chase,  submitted  to  the  Finance 
Committee  of  Boston  a  plan  for  the  government  of  that  city, 
which  follows,  in  a  general  way,  the  lines  of  the  Des  Moines 
system. 

San  DiegO;  Cal.,  installed  commission  government  May  3. 
1909;  Berkeley,  the  home  of  the  University  of  California,  has 
followed   suit,   and   Portland,    Ore.,   a   city   of    125,000  has   just 


66  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

recently  voted  favorably  on  the  proposition.  Boise  and  Lewis- 
ton,  Idaho,  are  also  governed  by  commissions,  while  Memphis, 
Tenn.,  with  150,000  population,  and  nearer  the  home  of  the 
idea,  is  to  install  its  new  charter  on  January  i,  1910.  Missis- 
sippi passed  a  state  law  in  1908,  and  one  city,  Jackson,  has- 
taken  advantage  of  it  so  far. 

Escape  from  Graft 

And  so  it  goes;  in  active  operation  in  six  states,  just  adopt- 
ed in  two  more,  pending  in  two  or  three  others,  and  number- 
ing also  cities  in  Massachusetts,  California  and  Oregon,  the 
commission  plan  has  already  made  remarkable  strides  toward 
general  adoption.  And  here  it  may  be  well  to  stop  a  moment 
and  inquire  why  this  new  idea  has  received  so  cordial  a  re- 
ception and  has  been  accorded  so  ready  a  hearing.  Is  it  a  fad 
in  government?  Is  it  merely  because  the  American  people  are 
eager  to  adopt  something  new  that  this  scheme  has  made  such 
rapid  headway?  Or  do  men  believe  they  see  a  wav  out  of  their 
old  municipal  slough  of  incompetence  and  graft?  Why  this- 
rapid  adoption  of  a  plan  not  yet  ten  years  old? 

The  reply  must  be  evident  to  one  at  all  acquainted  with 
American  men  and  their  institutions.  There  comes  forward 
a  plan  with  which  every  business  man  is  familiar;  every  stock- 
holder in  a  corporation  is  accustomed  to  voting  for  a  board 
of  directors;  why  not  vote  for  a  board  of  municipal  directors? 
The  solid  citizen  grasps  the  idea  instantly;  it  is  a  familiar 
one ;  he  knows  its  workings  in  business ;  he  understands  it 
thoroughly.  He  waits  only  to  ascertain  the  results  in  cities^ 
which  have  tried  it.  Much  simpler  than  the  mayor  and  coun- 
cil system,  it  appeals  to  him  from  the  first ;  and  the  verdict 
of  success,  pronounced  even  by  conservatives  wherever  the 
plan  has  been  tried,  stamps  the  seal  of  successful  experience 
upon  it.  The  old  feeling  that  municipal  government  is  a  hope- 
less mess  and  not  capable  of  improvement  or  reform  yields, 
in  the  flash  of  his  sure  instinct,  to  the  knowledge  that  here 
is  the  chance  to  change  the  whole  plan ;  to  locate  responsibility 
with  certainty;  to  tell  when  he  is  getting  a  good  administra- 
tion ;   to   know   where   his    money   goes.      And   the    steady   rate 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  67 

at  which  commission  government  is  being  adopted  means  a 
prompt  comprehension  of  the  vast  improvement  in  the  proposed 
governmental  machinery  over  the  old  way  of  doing  things, 
rather  than  undue  speed  in  taking  up  a  new  idea. 

What  It  Means 

For  the  commission  idea  in  essence,  means:  (i)  All  the 
municipal  power  in  the  hands  of  a  few  men  (usually  five),  who 
are,  individually,  heads  of  departments,  and,  collectively,  the 
legislative  as  well  as  the  final  administrative  authority  for  the 
city.  (2)  These  men  are  elected  by  the  voters  and  are  re- 
sponsible to  them.  In  the  first  place,  there  are  only  five  men 
to  choose,  instead  of  a  score,  so  the  voter  can  know  whom 
he  is  voting  for ;  then,  when  elected,  he  knows  whom  to  hold 
responsible,  and  with  the  addition  of  the  recall  (a  powerful 
check  on  the  commissioners)  and  the  referendum  (which  en- 
ables the  people  to  exercise  legislative  functions  directly  on 
important  matters),  he  feels  that  the  wires  are  no  longer 
crossed;  he  knows  to  whom  to  speak  and  the  commissioner, 
at  the  other  end,  hears.  The  clutch  no  longer  slips — all  the 
machinery  is  connected  up.  (3)  Some  method  of  abolishing 
partisan  politics  helps  to  make  plain  the  local  issues.  In  Gal- 
veston, a  strong  Civic  Club,  composed  of  public-spirited  bnsi- 
Tiess  men,  backs  for  re-election  the  commissioners  who  have 
given  satisfaction,  and  thus  obviates  the  necessity  of  their 
making  their  own  fight  for  office.  In  Des  Moines  a  non-parti- 
san primary  and  election  works  toward  the  same  end;  it  is 
not  possible  to  vote  a  party  ticket  straight,  but  each  name  must 
be  marked  separately.  (4)  Finally,  a  city  civil  service  in- 
sures freedom  from  the  worst  form  of  politics  in  administra- 
tion. (5)  The  publication  of  all  proceedings  of  the  council 
or  of  the  Commissioner  of  Finance  still  further  aids  the  voter 
to  decide  as  to  the  efficiency  of  his  government;  and  because 
he  pays  his  representatives,  he  is  still  more  likely  to  hold  them 
strictly  responsible  for  the  performance  of  their  duties. 

The  real,  underlying  reason  for  the  superiority  of  the  new 
plan  over  the  old  way  is  found  in  the  close  connection  of  the 
voter  with  the  government.     The  average  voter  really  chooses 


68  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

his  representatives,  for  he  is  not  confused  by  the  multitude 
of  offices  to  fill,  and  can  intelligently  pick  a  small  number. 
After  they  are  chosen,  they  may  be  recalled ;  their  ordinances 
may  be  subjected  to  the  voter's  will  by  a  referendum;  and  pub- 
lished proceedings  and  statements,  plainer  and  more  full  than 
formerly  was  the  custom,  enable  the  average  citizen  to  deter- 
mine what  sort  of  return  he  is  getting  for  his  taxes. 

A   Responsible   Government 

Too  much  power  in  a  few  hands?  No  more  than  was 
formerly  exercised  by  the  city  boss  or  a  clique  of  aldermen- 
often  scarcely  known  and  irresponsible,  while  the  commission- 
ers can  be  and  are  held  strictly  accountable.  The  exercise  of 
legislative  and  administrative  power  by  the  same  body  unde- 
sirable? It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  point  out  that  under  the 
usual  mayor  and  council  system  the  members  of  each  council 
committee  do  the  same  thing,  passing  ordinances  as  members 
of  the  council,  while  each  committee  supervises  a  branch  of 
the  administrative  work.  The  Des  Moines  and  Galveston  plans 
simply  substitute  a  small  council  (elected  at  large)  for  a  large 
council  (elected  by  wards),  and  each  commissioner  takes  the 
place  of  a  council  committee,  even  sometimes,  as  in  Houston, 
retaining  the  title  of  committee  chairman.  The  actual  admin- 
istrative work  is  carried  out  by  the  superintendents  and  em- 
ployes ;  only  the  supervision  is  in  the  hands  of  the  commis- 
sioners. 

The  new  plan  costs  too  much?  At  Houston.  Galveston,  Des 
Moines  and  in  other  cities  they  show  you  quite  conclusively 
that  the  commissioners  have  saved  the  city  the  amount  of  their 
salaries   several   times   over. 

The  plan  does  not  insure  good  government ;  no  mere  sys- 
tem can  do  that.  The  people  must  be  alert,  interested  in  their 
city  and  its  administration  and  ready  to  act  if  their  interests 
are  not  guarded.  No  scheme  of  government  can  take  the  place 
of  these  qualities  on  the  part  of  citizens.  But  what  the  new 
plan  does  is  closely  to  connect  the  people  and  the  governing 
body;  it  enables  the  voters  really  to  choose  their  men,  to  judge 
their  acts  with  a  fair  degree  of  accuracy  and  to  hold  them  re- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  69 

sponsible  for  the  kind  of  government  given,  retiring  the  com- 
missioners, if  necessary,  or  refusing  approval  of  their  laws; 
and  this  fact  inspires  the  hope  that  American  cities  can  be, 
after  all,  well  administered;  a  new  feeling  that  here  is  a  plan 
which  gives  the  average  citizen  a  chance  to  determine  who 
shall  represent  him  and  afterward  to  decide  whether  he  is 
being  adequately  represented.  This  is  why  commission  govern- 
ment is  spreading  so  rapidly  and  so  steadily,  and  why  the  re- 
sults so  far  obtained  have  been  so  favorable.  Every  student 
of  government  and  every  thoughtful  taxpayer  will  scan  with 
interest  reports  of  the  operations  of  this  plan  in  other  cities, 
debating  whether  its  principle  can  not  be  applied,  with  varia- 
tions, if  needed,  to  his  own  city. 

City   Hall    (Des   Moines).    10:   357-9.   April,   1909. 

Des  Moines  Plan :  Questions  and  Answers. 
Leave  .^^rth,   Kan.,   March    19,    1909. 

1.  Do  you  find  the  commission  plan  less  expensive  for  the 
city  than  your   former  plan? 

Yes,  we  save  about  25  per  cent  per  annum  on  the  actual 
running  expenses  of  the  city  under  the  lowest  expense  the 
city  has  ever  had. 

2.  If  it  is  less  expensive,  about  how  much  are  you  saving 
per  year? 

Find  answer  in  above. 

3.  Is  the  city  getting  better  returns  for  expenditures  than 
heretofore? 

We  are  getting  much  better  service  from  more  capable  men. 
and  men  who  are  more  efficient 

4.  Is  the  tax  being  reduced? 

Our  tax  rate  on  real  estate  has  been  reduced  possibly  2,?,V3 
per  cent.  Our  taxes  on  personal  property  have  increased  possi- 
bly 20  per  cent.* 

*(The  increase  in  tax  on  personal  property  is  the  result 
of  a  new  state  law  framed  to  catch  such  property  not  before 
listed. — Com.) 


70  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

5.  Are  the  laws  better  enforced? 

Yes,  there  is  less  lawlessness,  and  the  docket  of  our  Police 
Court  shows  less  arrests  for  all  causes  than  heretofore. 

6.  To  what  extent  have  you  been  able  to  eliminate  politics? 
IVe  have  eliminated  politics  entirely. 

The  plan  has  been  in  operation  in  Leavenworth  since  April, 
1908.     The  city  has  about  30,000  population. 

(Signed)  E.  W.  CRANCER,  Mayor. 

Des  Moines,  Iowa,  March  19,  1909. 

1.  Do  you  find  the  commission  plan  less  expensive  for  the 
city  than  your  former  plan? 

Yes. 

2.  If  it  is  less  expensive,  about  how  much  are  you  saving 
per  year? 

The  saving  this  year  is  estimated  between  $25,000  and  $40,000, 
exact  figures  not  obtainable  until  the  completion  of  the  annual 
report.  The  city  has  lived  within  its  income  for  the  first  time 
in  many  years. 

3.  Is  the  city  getting  better  returns  for  expenditures  than 
heretofore? 

Most  emphatically  yes.  I  believe  nearly  any  citizen  will 
endorse  this  statement. 

4.  Is  the  tax   rate   being  reduced? 
I  anticipate  a  reduction  next  year. 

5.  Are  the  laws  better  enforced? 

There  is  earnest  desire  on  the  part  of  the  commissioners 
closely  to  observe  the  law,  but  I  attribute  this  tendency  to  the 
men. 

6.  To  what    extent  have  you  been  able  to  eliminate  politics? 
Ward   lines   abolished:    partisan  politics   in  no  degree  con- 
sidered in  any  appointments  so  far  as  I  have  any  knowledge. 

The  plan  was  adopted  April,  1908.  City  between  90,000  and 
100,000. 

(Signed)  A.  J.  MATHIS,  Mayor. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  71 

Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa,  March  26,    1909. 

1.  Do  you  find  the  commission  plan  less  expensive  for  the 
city  than  your  former  plan? 

Under  the  commission  plan,  as  adopted  by  us,  it  costs  more 
for  the  salaries  of  the  mayor  and  city  councilman. 

2.  If  it  is  less  expensive,  about  how  much  are  you  saving 
per  year? 

The  difference  in  cost  of  operating  under  the  commission 
plan  is  more  than  ten  times  offset  by  values  received  in  all  ma- 
terials purchased  and  reduction  in  prices  in  all  contracts  made. 

3.  Is  the  city  getting  better  returns  for  expenditures  than 
heretofore? 

The  city  receives  better  returns  for  expenditures  than  here- 
tofore.    All  bills  except  contracts  are  discounted  2  per  cent. 

4.  Is  the  tax  rate  being  reduced? 
The  levy  was  reduced  one  mill. 

5.  Are  the  laws  better  enforced? 

The  laws  are  better  enforced.  Formerly  the  average  amount 
collected  per  month  for  fines  and  penalties  was  about  $70; 
under  the  commission  plan  the  average  amount  collected  is  about 
$700  per  month. 

6.  To  what  extent  have  ycu  been  able  to  eliminate  politics? 
The  commission  plan  in  actual  operation  in  this  city  has  ab- 
solutely eliminated  politics. 

Commission  went  into  effect  April,  1908.   Population  35,000. 
(Signed)  JOHN  F.  CARMODY,  Mayor. 

Houston,  Texas. 

The  Mayor  of  Houston,  Texas,  instead  of  answering  the 
questions,  sent  a  marked  copy  of  an  address  delivered  by  him 
at  Charlotte,  N.  C,  Nov.   18,  1908. 

The  following  extracts  are  taken  from  the  address: 

Inaugeration  in  Jul.v,  1905,  the  present  government  found 
a  floating  debt  of  over  $400,000,  and  an  empty  treasury.  The 
city  virtually  had  no  credit.  There  was  not  a  single  merchant 
that  desired  to  transact  any  business  with  the  local  government. 

However,  gloomy  as  the  prospect  was,  the  authorities  went 
about  their  task  with  the  determination  to  better  conditions. 


72  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

By  the  strictest  economy  we  redeemed  in  the  first  eight 
months  of  our  term  $306,202.47  of  the  old  floating  debt,  besides 
paying  our  monthly  bills  promptly,  as  well  as  the  salaries  of 
all  employes. 

In  the  three  years  of  commission  rule  the  city  of  Houston 
has  wiped  out  all  floating  debt  and  has  given  to  the  tax  payer  out 
of  the  treasury,  without  the  issuance  of  a  single  bond,  in  per- 
manent improvements  the  sum  of  $701,226.74,  and  has  eliminated 
the  floating  debt,  amounting  to  over  $400,000. 

It  is  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  Houston  that  a  sinking 
fund  has  been  created.  While  these  improvements  have  been 
going  on.  the  tax  rate  has  been  reduced  20  cents  on  the  $100. 

My  friends,  the  city  of  Houston,  is  very  prosperous  and  rap- 
idly growing.  In  the  last  sixty  days  nearly  $3,000,000  of  building 
permits  have  been  issued. 


Daily  Capital   (Des  Moines).  August  5,  1909. 

State  Experts  Like   Plan. 

Des  Moines'  commission  form  of  government  is  completely 
vindicated  by  the  report  of  the  municipal  examiners  submitted 
to  the  state  department  of  municipal  accounting. 

After  a  complete,  careful  and  methodical  investigation  of  the 
city's  government  under  the  Des  Moines  plan,  the  examiners, 
M.  F.  Cox  and  F.  M.  Abbott,  indorse  the  system  in  every 
respect. 

The  accounts  in  the  auditor's  and  treasurers  offices  are  found 
correct  to  the  penny  and  in  the  remarks  following  the  forty- 
five  pages  of  figures,  the  examiners  are  emphatic  in  their  com- 
mendations of  the  organization  under  the  commissioners. 

The  report  even  goes  so  far  as  to  recommend  features  of 
the  Des  Moines  plan  as  worthy  of  imitation  by  other  city 
governments. 

A  criticism  is  impUed  from  the  remarks  on  the  accounts 
of  the  police  court  as  a  suggestion  is  made  that  greater  care 
be  taken   in  that  department. 

Superintendent   Schramm   is   praised    for  his   system   of   re- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  73 

ceipts  and  disbursements  and  the  examiners  state  that  the  ac- 
counts and  finance  department  is  "conducted  upon  strictly  busi- 
ness methods." 

Mayor  Mathis'  alleged  withholding  of  certain  fees  is  men- 
tioned in  the  report  indirectly  by  reference  to  the  $1,388.25, 
which  the  examiners  cannot  account  for  "only  as  it  is  carried 
forward  from  the  police  judge's  account  of  receipts."  They 
"failed  to  find  any  excuse"  and  recommend  that  the  city  have 
"at  least  interest  on  the  money." 

The  report  says : 

In  the  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  city  of  Des  Moines, 
we  find  nothing  but  what  we  can  highly  commend,  so  far  as  the 
system  of  keeping  the  accounts  and  finances  is  concerned. 

All  schedules  and  pay  rolls  are  countersigned  by  the  auditor 
and  approved  by  the  mayor  and  in  addition  to  the  above,  each 
scheduled  pay  roll  is  certified  to  by  the  head  of  each  department, 
and  should  the  council  in  the  future,  decide  to  become  a  little 
more  harmonious  and  not  antagonize  each  other  at  times,  when 
the  welfare  of  the  city  and  each  individual  department  should  be 
in  the  minds  of  every  member  of  the  commission,  the  form  of 
government,  such  as  Des  Moines  now  has,  would  need  no  de- 
fense, for  we  believe  the  principle  to  be  correct,  after  examining 
the  methods  of  receiving  and  disbursing  the  amount  of  money  it 
takes  to  run  the  city  of  Des  Moines. 

We  find  receipts  on  file  for  all  moneys  paid  out,  and  the  fact 
that  some  branches  of  the  government  show  such  heavy  increases 
In  receipts  is  evidence  that  this  part  of  the  business  is  being 
looked  after. 

The  traffic  in  witness  fees  has  been  abandoned  and  the  pro- 
fessional bondsman  is  being  held  in  disrepute.  'KV&  suggest  though, 
that  some  improvement  may  yet  be  made  in  the  keep'ng  of  the 
accounts  of  the  police  court,  realizing  that  the  office  force  in  this 
department  has  plenty  to  do. 

In  the  auditor's  department,  during  the  period  between  April 
1st.  1P08,  and  April  1st,  1909,  there  were  19.274  warrants  drawn 
and  there  was  not  a  single  mistake  in  amounts  or  figures,  the 
head  of  the  department  and  his  assistants  are  all  competent  and 
worthy.  \^''e  found  in  this  department  a  record  of  appronriations 
and  expenditures  which  the  debits  carried  into  the  account  as 
they  appear,  and  no  warrants  drawn  beyond  the  appropriation. 
Also  a  complete  record  of  all  outstanding  warrants  is  kept  and 
carried  forward  each  month,  enabling  the  department  to  know  at 
all  times  the  conditions  of  the  finances. 

The  above  systems  we  commend  to  all  city  governments  as 
worthy  of  imitation. 

In  the  treasurer's  department  we  found  the  record  clear  and 
complete,  with  competent  men  handling  the  city's  cash.  In 
checking  up  the  treasurer's  cash  with  the  amount  on  hand  and  in 
banks,  it  is  made  to  appear  that  he  has  ?55.42  less  than  the  re- 
port shows.  This  is  explained  by  noting  the  overdraft  in  the 
"main  sewer  fund"  of  the  above  amount.  His  accounts  were 
correct  a   d  checked  to  the  penny. 

The  superintendent  of  accounts  and  finances  has  formulated  a 
system  which  is"  a  complete  check  upon  all  the  receipts  and  dis- 
bursements and  his  department  is  being  conducted  upon  strictly 
business  methods,  the  same  as  any  successful  enterprise. 


74  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 


In  December,  1908,  there  appears  among  the  receipts  of  this 
report,  in  the  general  fund,  the  amount  of  $1,388.25,  which  we 
cannot  account  for  only  as  it  is  carried  forward  from  the  police 
judge's  account  of  receipts  as  having  been  collected  in  a  former 
period.  Among  the  ordinances  of  the  city  of  Des  Moines,  it  is 
directed  that  all  money  collected  shall  be  turned  over  to  the  city 
on  the  succeeding  month  in  which  it  was  collected.  We  fail  to 
find  any  excuse  for  the  withholding  of  this  amount  for  nine 
months  anu  we  believe,  under  the  city  ordinances,  the  city  is 
entitled  at  least  to  the  interest  on  the  money,  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  the  city  solicitor  has  held  otherwise  in  an  opinion 
we  would  consider  dangerous  because  of  the  abuses  that  would 
naturally  follow. 

The  report  was  filed  with  Chief  Clerk  Alonzo  D.  Sheets 
of  the  municipal  accounting  department  and  copies  were  also 
filed  with  the  auditor  of  state  and  submitted  to  Mayor  Mathis. 

The  examination  commenced  with  the  accounts  beginning 
November  i,  1907.  The  first  part  of  the  report  covers  the 
period  from  that  date  until  April  i,  1908.  The  second  part 
covers  the  period  between  April  17,  1908,  to  April  1,  1909. 
This  last  named  portion  covers  the  splendid  progress  under  the 
Des  Moines  plan. 


Des  Moines  Evening  Tribune.  July  17,  1909. 

Cost  of  Des  Moines  Plan. 

Statement,  Year  Ending  April  1,  1909. 

Assets    $2,906,427.04 

Liabilities     1,077,180.34 

Amount  of  assets  over  liabilities $1,829,246.70 

Total  receipts  of  year   1,322,290.20 

Total    expenditures    998,875.77 

Balance   on   hand    333-4I4-43 

Property  value,   1908   77,546,580.00 

Assessed  valuation,  1908 19,386,645.00 

Rate    36.40 

Ten  dollars  for  each  man,  woman  and  child  in  Des  Moines. 
That  is  what  it  costs  to  run  Des  Moines  for  a  year,  accord- 
ing to  the  annual  report   for  the  fiscal  year  of   1908-09,  issued 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  75 

today.  Based  on  a  population  of  100,000,  it  costs  exactly  $9-56 
for  each  person. 

The  total  amount  spent  in  conducting  the  municipality's  af- 
fairs for  the  twelve  months  preceding  April  i,  1909,  was  $998,- 
^7S-77<  a  little  less  than  $1,000,000.  But  the  receipts,  including 
a  cash  balance  of  $205,141.83  for  that  period,  were  $1,332,290.20, 
so  the  city  started  the  current  year  with  a  balance  on  hand  of 
$333,414.43. 

Of  the  $9.56  spent  for  each  person  in  the  city,  62  cents 
went  for  general  government,  $2.47  for  the  protection  of  life 
and  property,  53  cents  for  health  and  sanitation,  $2.56  for  high- 
ways, 32  cents  for  libraries,  58  cents  for  recreation,  21  cents 
for  cemeteries,  13  cents  for  miscellaneous,  38  cents  for  prin- 
cipal and  interest  on  public  debt  and  $1.76  on  outstanding  debt 
obligations. 

Lozver   Than   Other   Cities 

Compared  with  other  cities  about  its  size,  Des  Moines'  per 
capita  cost  is  materially  lower  in  most  instances.  The  cost 
of  conducting  Lynn,  Mass.,  is  $14.07  for  each  person ;  Richmond, 
Va.,  $17.44.  It  costs  more  for  other  Iowa  cities  than  it  does 
for  Des  Moines,  Sioux  City's  per  capita  rate  being  $13-22,  and 
that  of  Dubuque,  $10.26. 

But  perhaps  the  best  comparison  for  Des  Moines  is  the 
difference  in  accomplishments  under  the  commission  form  of 
government  and  the  old  aldermanic  system.  The  report  shows 
that  the  first  year's  business  under  the  new  system  was  con- 
ducted more  cheaply  by  practically  $170,000  than  the  last  year 
of  the  old  regime.  The  city  was  exactly  $224,055.10  better  of? 
at  the  beginning  of  its  second  year,  under  the  Des  Moines  plan 
than  it  was  when  it  entered  upon  its  first  year.  All  of  this 
sum  is  not  credited  to  the  superior  operation  of  the  new  sys- 
tem because  an  indebtedness  of  $50,000  was  handed  down  from 
one  council  to  the  other  for  several  years  and  it  had  to  be 
dealt  with  by  the  last  council  under  the  aldermanic  plan. 


76  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Condition  April  i 

The  following  is  the  way  the  city's  financial  accounts 
looked  on  April  i,  1908,  the  date  the  Des  Moines  plan  went 
into  effect,  and  on  April  1,  1909,  the  beginning  of  its  second 
year :  1909.  1908. 

Total  working  funds    $164,352.05    $72,790.11 

Claims    outstanding    59,496-77     191,989.93 

So  there  was  $91,561.94  more  in  the  working  funds  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  current  year  than  there  was  twelve  months  ago, 
and  at  the  same  time  there  was  $132,493.16  less  in  debts  to  be  paid. 
The  addition  of  these  two  sums  gives  the  amount  the  city  is 
better  off— $224,055.10. 

The  following  are  the  amounts  spent  during  the  first  year 
under  the  Des  Moines  plan  by  the  five  departments  in  perform- 
ing their  duties : 

Public   affairs    $60,784.23 

Accounts  and  finance  235,038.02 

Public    safety    231,789.64 

Streets  and  public  improvements 369.995-23 

Parks    and   public   property 84,39486 

Total    in    all    departments    $982,001.98 

Street  improvements  alone  amounted  to  $357,755-50  in  the 
last  year.    The  following  is  the  manner  in  which  it  was  invested : 

Total  Cost. 

Brick  paving   $111,178.11 

Asphalt    paving    91,993-94 

Creosote    paving    29,993-94 

Petrolithic   oil   road    5430-92 

Curbing     6,214.00 

Combined   curb   and   gutter 2,607.61 

Sewers     102,141.70 

Sewer  and  water  connections  764.60 

Sidewalks   7,553-57 

Total    $357,755.50 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  ^^ 

A  comparative  statement  for  the  last  eight  years  shows 
that  the  tax  levy  viras  the  lowest  of  any  year  in  that  period,  being 
36.4  on  a  one-fourth  valuation  of  the  property.  In  1907  it  was 
38.7  and  in  1900,  40.3. 

While  the  city  levies  have  gradually  been  lowered  the  state, 
county  and  school  have  increased.  The  state  levy  in  1908  as 
compared  with  the  year  previous  was  4  as  against  3.9;  the 
county  16  as  against  16.3  and  the  school  30.4  as  against  27.9. 

The  city  of  Des  Moines  has  personal  property  worth  near- 
ly three  million  dollars.  The  following  is  an  itemized  list  of 
its  holdings  and  its  debit.  It  shows  that  on  April  i  this  year 
it  was  $1,829,246.70  to  the  good.  In  other  words  it  had  that 
much  more  in  assets  than  liabilities : 

ASSETS 

Cash    on   hand    $333,41443 

Real  estate — 

City  hall    (old)    $  50,000.00 

City  hall  site  (new) 80,000.50 

Police    station     23,000.00 

Fire   stations    200,890.00 

Detention  hospitals   25,000.00 

Parks    767,000.00 

Cemeteries — 

Laurel    Hill     15,000.00 

Glendale     80,000.00 

Woodland 105,000.00 

Library    420,000.00 

Market  places   10,000.00 

Bridges    679,041.50   $2,359,931-50 

Personal  property,  all  depts    213,081.11 

Total   assets    $2,906,427.04 


;8  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 


LIABILITIES. 


General    bonds    $838,000.00 

Special    (city  hall   site)    bonds    78,000.00 

Locust  St.  bridge  certificates   (*a)    56,800.00 

City  improvement  certificates  2,338.40 

Outstanding  judgment    (*b)    707.25 

Land    payments    (parks)     26,500.00 

Land  payments   (Laurel  Hill  cemetery)..     11,000.00 

Warrants    outstanding    41,054.59 

Claim   (D.  M.  Water  Co.  rental) 22,780.10 

Total    indebtedness    $1,077,180.34 

Amount  of  assets  over  liabilities $1,829,246.70 


Des  Moines  Register  and  Leader,  June  i,  1909. 

Galveston  City  Election. 

The  practical  workings  of  southern  politics  have  recently 
been  illustrated  in  the  Galveston  city  election,  if  the  story 
told  in  the  Kansas  City  Star  by  a  southern  correspondent  may 
be  relied  upon. 

As  has  been  widely  advertised,  wherever  the  commission  plan 
is  under  debate,  Galveston  has  been  captured  by  the  "liberal" 
element.  The  forces  of  reform  were  caught  napping  and  as 
usual  in  such  cases  were  easily  bagged.  The  newly  elected 
mayor  belongs  to  the  machine  that  was  ousted  when  the  com- 
mission government  was  first  installed. 

The  method  of  the  overturn  is  of  special  interest  in  the 
north  because  it  illustrates  what  the  south  is  attempting  to  do 
in  the  limitation  of  suffrage  and  what  is  possible  whenever  there 
is  enough  division  among  the  white  leaders  to  warrant  either 
faction  in  bringing  the  colored  man  to  the  polls. 

Texas  has  attempted  to  eliminate  the  colored  vote  by  the 
imposition  of  a  poll  tax  qualification.  There  are  two  poll  taxes 
of  two  dollars  each,  both  of  which  must  be  paid  in  the  month  of 
February  or  the  delinquent  will  not  be  entitled  to  vote  at  any 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  79 

subsequent  elections.  February  is  the  shortest  month,  and  it 
is  as  far  removed  from  election  day  as  it  well  could  be.  The 
colored  voter  is  not  encouraged  to  remember,  and  he  does  not 
vote. 

But  this  year  the  "liberal"  element  saw  to  it  that  the  poll 
taxes  of  a  large  number  of  negroes  were  paid.  Less  than 
60  per  cent  of  the  voting  population  had  qualified  and  when 
election  day  came  around  the  "liberal"  candidates  had  been 
elected  by  some  500  majority.  The  victory  was  not  marked  in 
a  total  vote    of  5,100.     But  it  was  enough. 

It  is  in  view  of  such  an  election  that  the  importance  of  the 
recall  as  an  adjunct  of  the  commission  government  is  seen. 
The,  commission  government  must  make  good  with  the  average 
citizen  in  office  and  the  average  citizen  can  be  made  into  a  good 
official  if  he  knows  that  his  tenure  is  no  longer  than  the  good 
will  of  the  people  whose  money  he  is  handling. 

Judge  Fisher,  the  newly  elected  Galveston  mayor,  in  an 
interview  says : 

"I  have  at  all  times  believed,  and  still  believe,  in  the  com- 
mission form  of  government.  The  people  of  Galveston  may  rest 
assured  that,  by  no  act  of  mine,  will  the  commission  form  of 
government  be  disturbed." 

With  the  recall  in  the  hands  of  the  citizen  there  would  be 
g'reater  assurance  that  he  would  do  as  well  as  he  says. 

Des  Moines  Register  and  Leader.  August  10,  1909. 

Plan   Not   at   Fault. 

"Opponents  of  the  Des  IMoines  plan  attempt  to  make  much 
of  the  frequent  wrangles  between  the  commissioners  at  council 
meetings,"  said  A.  L.  Clinite.  "Seizing  upon  these  disagree- 
ments they  claim  it  betrays  a  weakness  and  therefore  the 
plan  is  no  improvment  upon  the  old  system.  To  my  mind  the 
fact  that  the  commissioners  thrash  out  all  their  differences  in 
open  council  is  one  of  the  most  satisfactory  evidences  of  the 
superiority  of  the  Des  Moines  plan.  Preceding  its  adoption  it 
was  customary  for  members  of  the  council,  most  of  whom  were 


8o  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

contractors,  to  retire  to  the  privacy  of  committee  of  the  whole 
and  behind  closed  doors  frame  up  jobs  for  their  individual  profit. 
The  public  was  not  permitted  to  know  what  transpired  in  com- 
mittee of  the  whole.  Now  the  councilmen  discuss  and  act  upon 
all  public  matters  in  open  meeting.  Thus  the  public  is  equally 
as  well  informed  as  to  what  is  going  on  as  are  the  commis- 
sioners. There  is  no  secrecy.  Instead  of  fat  contracts,  in  wliich 
I  am  told  the  aldermen  were  often  silent  partners,  being 
awarded  to  councilmen  or  their  friends,  the  work  is  let  publicly. 
It  is  noticeable  that  most  of  the  old  crowd  of  contractors  have 
not  fared  well  since  this  open  policy  was  adopted.  Almost 
every  man  one  hears  opposing  the  Des  Moines  plan  is  an  old 
contractor.  In  my  opinion  the  plan  has  worked  quite  satisfac- 
torily, and  I  believe  the  same  opinion  is  entertained  by  a  large 
majority  of  the  voters.  Then  compare  the  aspect  of  the  streets 
today  with  their  condition  five  or  six  years  ago.  One  glance 
is  enough  to  satisfy  any  sober  minded  citizen  that  the  new 
plan  is  infinitely  to  be  preferred  to  the  former  system,  or  more 
properly,  lack  of  system.  The  taxpayers  are  getting  something 
for  their  money,  now.  Yet  one  can  observe  a  getting  together 
of  the  forces  of  reaction  for  a  desperate  attempt  next  spring  to 
install  the  old  crowd  in  the  city  offices." 


Galveston  News.  April   17,   1909. 

Commission  Plan  in  Texas.    Tom  Finty. 

The  commission  form  of  government  as  applied  to  municipal- 
ities has  become  so  thoroughly  established  in  Texas,  where  it 
was  developed,  that  the  people  of  this  state  now  generally 
realize  its  worth  and  suggestions  are  heard  that  it  should  be 
applied  to  county  government  and  even  state  government.  Out- 
side of  the  state,  too,  it  has  been  adopted  with  certain  modifica- 
tions, in  many  cities,  where  its  value  has  been  tested  to  a  certain 
extent.  Naturally,  people  of  other  states,  who  have  taken  an 
interest  in  the  matter  still  turn  to  Texas  where  the  test  has  been 
most  thorough  for  information  on  this  subjct.  One  of  the 
latest  inquiries  is  as  to  whether  the  particular  kind  of  govern- 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  8i 

merit  is  calculated  to  succeed  in  small  cities,  say  places  of 
10,000  to  20,000  inhabitants.  Heretofore,  Texas  students  of  the 
subject  have  declared  their  belief  that  it  would  be  easier  to 
make  a  success  of  commission  government  in  small  cities 
than  in  large  ones.  Now  they  are  able  to  point  to  results  for 
proof  that  the  commission  will  succeed  in  small  cities.  Here  is 
the  record  in  brief  of  commission  government  in  Texas, — the 
names  of  the  cities  which  have  adopted  commission  government, 
the  year  in  which  they  were  granted  charters  prescribing  that 
method,  and  the  population  of  each  of  them,  approximately : 

City  Date  of    Charter  Population 

Galveston   1901  40,000 

Houston    1903  90,000 

Dallas     1907  90,000 

Fort   Worth    1907  65,000 

El  Paso   1907  45,ocx) 

Denison    1907  IS-OOO 

Greenville     1907  12,000 

Austin  1909  35.000 

Waco    1909  35,000 

Marshall     1909  12,000 

Palestine    1909  1 1,000 

Corpus  Christi   1909  10,000 

This  list  shows  that  the  value  of  the  commission  form  of 
government  has  been  proved  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  people  in 
most  of  the  principal  cities  of  Texas,  but  perhaps  the  most  im- 
pressive item  is  to  be  added :  The  fact  that  the  Texas  legislature 
recently  enacted  a  law  authorizing  those  cities  (of  less  than 
10,000  inhabitants)  which  incorporate  under  the  general  law 
to  adopt  the  commission  plan.  The  people  in  many  of  these 
smaller  cities  of  the  state  have  manifested  a  lively  interest  in 
the  matter,  and  it  is  likely  that  a  number  of  them  soon  will 
avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity  afforded  by  the  new  law. 

Shall  Plan  be  Extended f 

What  about  applying  the  principle  to  county  government  and 
state  government? 


82  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Some  of  the  propositions  made  along  this  line,  and  some 
of  the  questons  asked  in  that  regard  indicate  that  while  Texas 
people  are  pretty  well  agreed  that  commission  government  is  a 
success,  the  reasons  for  its  success  are  not  so  thoroughly  under- 
stood. 

"Since  the  commission  form  of  government  succeeds  in 
respect  to  cities,  makes  an  improvement,  it  is  bound  to  succeed 
if  applied  to  counties  or  to  the  state,"  says  an  advocate  of  exten- 
sion. And  that  reasoning  appears  to  be  perfectly  sound.  The 
problem,  however,  lies  not  so  much  in  operating  a  commission 
plan  of  government  for  county  or  state  as  it  does  in  making  the 
application. 

"We  already  have  a  commission  form  of  government  for 
counties,  and  it  does  not  succeed,"  is  an  objection  which  has  been 
made  by  persons  who  consider  the  commissions  court  of  each 
county,  composed  of  five  men  and  clothed  with  broad  powers, 
the  equivalent  of  the  city  commission.  The  objection,  when  sub- 
jected to  analysis,,  is  proof  of  the  assertion  already  made  that 
the  reason  for  the  success  of  the  commission  form  of  govern- 
ment as  applied  to  cities  is  not  so  generally  understood  as  is  the 
success  itself  recognized. 

Have  we  a  commission  form  of  government  for  our  Texas 
counties?  If  so,  why  is  it  not  a  success?  Why  has  the  com- 
mission form  of  government  as  applied  to  cities  proved  satis- 
factory ? 

JVJiy  Council  Plan  Fails 

Crossing  lots  for  an  answer,  it  may  be  said  that  the  commis- 
sion form  of  government  has  succeeded  because  of  its  antipodal 
differences  from  the  old  council  plan,  which  latter  often  proved 
unsatisfactory  for  these  reasons : 

First,  with  a  large  number  of  elective  ofificers  the  government 
proved  cumbersome  and  unwieldy,  responsibility  and  power  being 
diffused.  When  really  capable  men  were  elected  to  office,  they 
found  it  difficult  or  impossible  to  accomplish  good  work. 

Second,  with  a  large  number  of  offices  to  be  elected  and  gen- 
erally a  number  of  candidates  seeking  each  office,  it  became  prac- 
tically impossible  for  any  citizen  save  the  professional  politician 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  83 

who  devotes  all  of  his  time  to  the  subject,  intelligently  to  choose 
as  between  the  various  candidates  for  each  office. 

Third,  the  better  class  of  citizens,  qualitied  and  honest,  re- 
frained from  being  candidates  for  office  because  (a)  it  was  prac- 
tically impossible  for  voters  to  make  intelligent  choice  as  between 
the  candidates,  and  (b)  it  was  practically  impossible  and  certainly 
exceedingly  difficult  for  such  men,  if  chosen  to  office,  to  accom- 
plish much  good  therein. 

Basis  of  Comviission  Plan 

Per  contra,  the  commission  form  of  government,  has  suc- 
ceeded because,  in  the  first  place,  the  people  having  fair  oppor- 
tunity to  choose  wisely  as  betwen  a  comparatively  small  number 
of  candidates,  the  better  class  of  citizens,  capable  and  honest, 
are  willing  to  become  candidates  for  public  office;  and  secondly, 
because  such  men  when  elected  are  able  by  reason  of  the  fact  that 
the  commission  is  a  small  and  wieldy  body,  clothed  with  adequate 
powers  and  under  definite  responsibilty,  to  achieve  their  worthy 
purposes.  This  second  reason,  together  with  the  first,  constitutes 
the  inducement  for  the  right  sort  of  men  to  give  their  services 
to  the  public. 

County  Government  Defects 

Perceiving  the  reasons  for  success  of  the  commission  plnn  as 
applied  to  cities,  it  is  not  difficult  to  understand  why  our  county 
government  in  Texas,  especially  in  counties  of  large  population, 
has  often  been  unsatisfactory.  For  one  thing,  the  Commissioners' 
Court,  while  having  great  power,  does  not  by  any  means  control 
all  that  there  is  to  the  county  government.  There  are  other 
county  officials,  chosen  directly  by  the  people  and  responsible  in 
very  slight  degree,  if  at  all,  to  the  Commissioners'  Court,  where- 
as a  distinctive  feature  of  the  commission  form  of  government 
as  applied  to  cities  is  that  the  commissioners  appoint  all  other 
officers  of  the  city,  and  in  consequence  have  complete  and  effec- 
tive control  over  the  entire  government.  The  people  look  to  com- 
missioners and  to  them  only,  for  results.  The  other  officers 
and  employes  of  the  city  look  to  the  commissioners,  and  to  them 
only,  for  orders. 


84  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

This,  however,  is  not  the  chief  difference.  The  main  point 
of  difference  lies  in  the  method  of  selecting  the  two  groups  of 
officials. 

County  commissioners  are  chosen  by  precincts ;  city  commis- 
sioners, under  the  Galveston  plan,  are  chosen  from  the  city  at 
large  and  by  all  the  voters  of  the  city. 

Party  politics  enters  into  the  selection  of  county  commis- 
sioners, in  many  instances  interfering  with  the  free  exercise  of 
judgment  upon  the  part  of  voters.  Such  is  not  the  case  in  a 
majority  of  the  cities  which  have  adopted  the  commission  plan 
of  government,  and  in  none  of  them  where  it  is  giving  approxi 
mately  perfect  satisfaction. 

Finally,  and  what  is  most  important,  the  voter  in  picking 
county  commissioners  is  called  upon  to  make  a  choice  as  between 
many  candidates,  which  is  not  the  case  in  the  selection  of  city 
commissioners.  Not  that  there  are  many  candidates  for  a  county 
commissionership  ;  the  trouble  is  that  county  commissioners  are 
chosen  at  the  same  time  as  other  county  officers,  and  precinct, 
district,  state,  and  perhaps  national  officers.  Too  much  goes 
on  during  the  preceding  campaign  to  render  it  possible  for  any 
save  professional  politicians  to  gain  accurate  information  as  to 
many  of  the  candidates. 

It  sems  plain,  therefore,  that  the  application  of  the  commis- 
sion form  of  government  to  county  affairs  would  involve  four 
things,  viz : 

1.  Treatment  of  the  county  as  a  unit,  electing  all  mem- 
bers of  the  Commissioners'  Court  from  the  county  at  large. 

2.  Vesting  the  county  government  exclusively  in  the  Com- 
missioners' Court  and  empowering  that  body  to  fill  all  other 
county  offices. 

3.  Choice  of  the  members  of  said  court  at  an  election  held 
exclusively  for  that  purpose. 

4.  Elimination    of    partisan   politics    from   county   affairs. 

Step  Backward 

Within  the  last  few  years  county  government  in  Texas 
has  been  set  further  away  from  the  commission  plan  than  it  was 
before,  and  this  is  true  in  a  lesser  degree  of  the  state  government. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  85 

Prior  to  the  legalizing  of  primary  elections  and  the  forcing  of 
that  system  upon  the  dominant  party  as  to  all  offices,  county 
officers  were  chosen  in  many  of  the  counties  of  the  state  with- 
out regard  to  party  lines.  In  sporting  parlance,  it  was  "a  free 
for  all,  and  let  the  best  man  win."  And  even  where  party  lines 
were  drawn,  generally  speaking,  the  candidates  of  the  Democratic 
party  for  county  offices  were  chosen  at  primaries  or  at  conven- 
tions held  expressly  for  that  purpose.  The  local  matters  were 
not  mixed  up  and  confused  with  those  pertaining  to  districts, 
the  state  or  the  nation.  Now  the  voter  is  called  upon  to  make 
selections  during  the  same  campaign,  and  upon  the  same  day 
for  all  offices,  "from  constable  to  president." 

It  must  be  apparent  to  the  observant  citizen  that' the  injection 
of  partisan  politics  all  along  the  line,  accompanied  by  the  partial 
paralysis  of  public  thought,  has  weakened  not  only  county  gov- 
ernment, but  state  government  as  well.  Whatever  may  be  said 
of  the  respective  merits  of  the  convention  system  and  the  primary 
election  system,  it  will  not  be  gainsaid  by  any  respectable  student 
of  the  subject  that  the  primary  system  is  not  to  be  administered 
in  allopathic  doses.  Leading  advocates  of  that  system  have  uni- 
formly asserted  and  contended  that  a  short  ballot  is  essential  to 
the  success  of  the  sytsem.  Texas  legislatures,  however,  have 
esteemed  it  a  virtue  to  fasten  the  system  upon  the  state  under 
conditions  making  an  abnormally  long  ballot  unavoidable.  More- 
over, much  of  the  legislation  enacted  subsequent  to  the  adoption 
of  the  system  has  been  such  as  to  add  to  the  ballot  and  to  in- 
crease the  confusion  of  the  campaign. 

Instead  of  confining  the  functions  of  government  to  existing 
departments,  legislators  continue  to  manifest  a  disposition  to 
circumscribe  the  jurisdiction  of  the  same,  and  without  apparent 
necessity,  to  create  new  offices.  The  desire  to  make  these  new 
offices  elective  is  manifest  more  often  than  it  is  put  into  effect. 
The  idea  with  a  large  number  of  Texas  legislators  and  other 
politicians  seems  to  be  that  the  more  electing  the  people  do  the 
better  it  will  be  for  them.  This  is  diametrically  opposed  not  only 
to  the  fundamental  idea  of  the  commission  form  of  government, 
but  to  one  of  the  basic  ideas  of  the  primary  election  system, 
which   is  that   the  people   ought   to  undertake   to   elect   enough 


86  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

officers  properly  to  direct  the  government,  and  no  more.     If  they 
do  undertake  to  choose  more,  they  are  apt  to  choose  none  wisely. 

Short  Ballot  and  an  Honest  Count 

Here  is  the  gospel  of  the  primary  election  propagandists: 
"Shorten  the  ballot.  Reduce  membership  of  the  legislature. 
Reduce  number  of  other  elective  officers.  Let  these  appoint  all 
other  necessary  officers,  clerks  and  employes.  Lengthen  the  ten- 
ure of  the  office.  Elect  a  part  of  the  officers  alternately  every 
two  years.  The  result  will  be  a  short  ballot  and  the  people  may 
vote  intelligently." 

In  short,  the  slogan  is :  "A  short  ballot  and  an  honest  count." 

The  idea  that  only  a  few  officers  should  be  elected,  and  that 
these  should  choose  the  rest,  is  opposed  by  some  people  on  the 
ground  that  appointive  officers  are  not  "'close  to  the  people,"  and 
because  they  say  the  few  officers  clothed  with  appointive  power 
could  build  a  political  machine  to  perpetuate  themselves  and 
their  dynasty  in  office. 

The  answer  is,  that  we  already  have  a  large  number 
of  appointive  officers  and  have  political  machines,  without  the 
people  having  a  fair  opportunity  to  choose  men  to  make  the  ap- 
pointments, whereas  were  the  election  system  such  as  to  give 
the  people  such  opportunity,  more  men  of  the  right  sort  would 
be  attracted  to  the  public  service  and  the  dangers  of  machine 
politics  would  be  less  consequential. 

Precisely  the  same  objection  was  made  to  the  commission 
form  of  government  as  applied  to  cities  at  first  but  it  has 
been  proved  to  be  groundless. 

The  medium  between  impracticable  pure  democracy  for 
large  constituencies  upon  the  one  hand,  and  an  autocracy  upon 
the  other,  is  a  government  in  which  the  people  elect  only  enough 
officers  to  direct  their  affairs,  and  in  which  the  people  have  a 
fair  chance  to  elect  such  officers,  in  which  they  have  "a  short 
ballot  and  an  honest  count." 

Obviously,  however,  it  is  clear  that  the  complete  application 
of  the  common  principle  to  the  state  officers,  even  to  county  of- 
ficers, presents  difficulties  not  met  in  applying  it  to  city  affairs. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  87 

Midwestern    (Des   Moines).   3:25-8.  June,    1909. 
Des  Moines  Plan.     Henry  E.  Sampson. 

During  the  last  year  every  department  of  the  city  kept  with- 
in the  budget,  and  closed  with  a  balance  in  the  treasury  instead 
of  the  usual  deficit.  On  April  i,  1909,  the  city  had  a  working 
capital,  after  all  bills  for  the  year  had  been  paid,  of  $104,855. 
Compare  this  situation  with  that  of  the  city  under  the  old  sys- 
tem, when  on  April  i,  1908,  they  lacked  $119,200  of  enough  money 
to  pay  their  obligations  for  the  year.  In  fairness  to  the  old 
administration  it  should  be  said  that  about  $40,000  of  this  $119,200 
had  been  carried  over  from  the  previous  year,  but  even  then 
the  last  city  council  under  the  old  system  was  $79,200  behind. 
By  adding  the  balance  on  hand  at  the  close  of  the  year  of  the 
new  administration  to  the  deficit  shown  at  the  close  of  the  old 
administration  we  find  a  difference  between  the  two  systems  of 
government  of  $184,055.  Not  since  1890,  and  but  twice  in 
the  history  of  Des  Moines,  has  there  been  a  balance  in  the  treas- 
ury at  the  end  of  the  fiscal  year. 

In  this  connection  it  may  be  stated  that  practically  the  entire 
Ijonded  indebtedness  of  the  city  of  Des  Moines  is  the  result  of 
these  annual  deficits  of  our  old  city  government.  Under  its 
imbusinesslike  administration  extravagance  and  waste  was  every- 
where found,  and  the  books  of  the  city  show,  with  two  excep- 
tions, a  deficit  at  the  close  of  each  year.  These  have  been  al- 
lowed to  accumulate  for  two  or  three  years ;  then  bonds  would 
be  issued  to  cover  the  floating  debt,  and,  as  a  result,  the  city 
today  is  carrying  the  burden  of  a  bonded  indebtedness  of 
$916,000,  upon  which  the  tax  payers  of  Des  Moines  are  required 
to  pay  the  annual  interest  of  $37,730. 

It  may  be  of  interest  to  the  reader  to  note  some  of  the  busi- 
ness methods  introduced  by  the  governing  board  of  this  new 
form  of  city  government. 

As  business  men  they  saw  that  the  funds  of  the  city  should 
be  drawing  interest,  and  so  set  about  at  once  to  make  such 
arrangements  with  the  banks,  with  the  result  that  the  city  is 
now  drawing  four  per  cent  on  time  deposits  and  two  per  cent 
on  daily  balances.  The  interest  on  the  various  funds  of  the 
•city  for  the  year  just  past  amounted  to  $9,132.17. 


88  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

The  board  of  commissioners  were  also  able  to  make  more 
favorable  contracts  with  the  lighting  companies.  The  lighting 
bill  of  the  city  for  the  year  ending  April  i,  1908,  was  $66,243^ 
while  that  for  the  year  ending  April  1,  iQog,  was  about  $60,694,- 
or  a  saving  to  the  city  in  this  one  item  alone  of  $5,549.  Another 
item  on  this  bill  is  now  in  litigation,  and  this,  if  the  city  is  suc- 
cessful, will  increase  the  amount  saved  by  the  city  on  lighting 
bills  alone  to  $10,322.  The  present  rate  for  arc  lights  is  $65  per 
year;  prior  to  April,  1908,  it  was  $95  per  year.  In  addition  to 
this  the  city  has  had  the  603  lamps,  which  were  formerly  on 
moonlight  schedule,  burning  all  night  and  every  night;  a  gain  of 
1,818  hours  per  lamp  per  year. 

Oskaloosa   (Iowa)   Daily  Herald.  April  6,  1909. 

Commission    Plan. 

The  commission  plan  of  city  government  has  been  in 
force  in  Des  Moines  for  one  year.  Following  are  some 
of  the  reforms  that  have  been  brought  about: 

1.  There  is  an  annual  surplus  instead  of  the  usual  deficit. 

2.  Service  is  not  only  more  economical,  but  more  efficient. 

3.  Streets  have  been  kept  clean. 

4.  Paving  has  been  laid  according  to  contract. 

5.  Contracts   have  been  let  to  the  lowest  bidders. 

6.  Police  department  is  no  longer  a  political  asset. 

7.  Fire  department  is  no  longer  part  of  a  political  machine. 

8.  Government  has  been  placed  upon  a  business  basis. 

9.  Business  arrangements  have  been  made  with  public  serv- 
ice corporations  with  immense  profit  to  the  city. 

10.  Water  rates  have  been  reduced. 

11.  Cost  of  street  lighting  has   been  reduced. 

12.  Negotiations  are  on  for  profit-sharing  arrangements 
with  the  street  railway  corporation. 

13.  The  "red  light  district"  has  been  wiped  out. 

14.  The  "bond  shark"  business  has  been  prohibited. 

15.  Slot  machines  have  been  driven  out  of  the  city. 

16.  People  are  satisfied  with  new  form  of  government  and 
unprejudiced  opposition  to  it  is  disappearing. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  8^. 

17.  Partisan  politics  have  been  removed  from  the  manage- 
ment of  the  affairs  of  the  city. 

18.  The  city  hall  has  been  cleared  of  political  loafers  and 
grafters  and  now  resembles  the  business  headquarters  of  a  large 
commercial  or  industrial  institution. 

These  are  one  and  all  noteworthy  accomplishments  and  they 
afford  substantial  encouragement  for  other  cities  to  adopt  the 
plan  that  made  them  possible. 


Washington    (D.   C.)   Times. 

National    View   of  the  Des    Moines   Plan. 

(This  is  the  fourth  of  a  series  of  articles  by  a  government 
official  dealing  with  the  developments  of  the  commission  form 
of  government  in  various  cities  of  the  west  and  south.  These 
articles  are  being  written  especially  for  the  Times,  apropos  of 
the  present  discussion  as  to  the  best  form  of  government  for- 
the  District  of  Columbia — Washington,  D.  C.  Times.) 

Des  Moines  has,  in  some  respects,  the  most  remarkable  and 
successful  government  of  any  city  of  its  size  in  the  United  States. 
With  a  population  of  a  little  less  than  100,000,  with  farming 
and  some  manufacturing  as  basic  industries,  the  capital  of  Iowa 
presents  a  case  of  a  municipality  which  may  fairly  be  called 
typically   American. 

Large  enough  to  have  some  of  the  problems  of  the  great 
centers,  small  enough  to  be  like  many  other  towns,  the  success 
with  its  "Des  Moines  plan"  is  of  great  value  to  other  places. 
Des  Moines  has  taken  the  Galveston  idea  of  a  board  of  five 
municipal  directors,  francnises,  a  recall  for  unsatisfactory  com- 
missioners, a  city  civil  service  and  a  non-partisan  primary  and 
election.  This  combination  makes  a  remarkably  strong  scheme 
of  government  in  the  opinion  of  most  of  those  interviewed,  and 
it  is  worth  while  to  inquire  how  it  was  initiated,  and  to  examine 
its  results. 

The  "Des  Moines  plan"  was  the  result  of  a  natural  develop- 
ment, not  of  a  crisis,  as  at  Galveston,  and  no  unusual  burst  of 
public   spirit  can  be   said  to  be   responsible   for  its  adoption  or 


90  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

success.  In  1905  the  feeling  that  Des  Moines  might  improve 
her  government  was  augmented  by  reports  from  citizens  who 
had  visited  Galveston,  notably  James  G.  Berryhill,  an  attorney, 
and  who  spoke  highly  of  conditions  there. 

Bill  into   Legislature 

A  public  meeting  and  general  discussion  led  to  the  intro- 
duction into  the  Iowa  legislature  in  1906  of  a  bill  to  allow  cities 
of  more  than  25,000  to  adopt  commission  government.  The 
measure  failed  to  pass,  but  in  November  of  that  year  the  Greater 
Des  Moines  club  took  up  the  plan ;  letters  in  newspapers  and 
general  discussion  led  to  a  great  public  debate  on  January  31, 
1907,  at  which  both  the  Galveston  and  the  Indianapolis  system, 
of  a  powerful  mayor  and  a  large  council,  were  presented. 

The  meeting  decided  overwhelmingly  in  favor  of  the  former 
plan,  and  a  committee  appointed  to  draft  a  bill  succeeded  so  well 
that  it  passed  both  houses,  and  was  signed  by  the  governor  on 
March  29,  1907.  It  took  a  year  longer,  however,  to  get  a  suit 
brought  before  the  state  supreme  court  to  test  the  constitutional- 
ity of  the  law,  to  hold  a  primary  and  an  election,  and  to  start 
the  wheels  running.  A  great  number  of  candidates  appeared  at 
the  primary  and  at  the  election  a  mixed  ticket  was  chosen. 

Under  the  Des  Moines  plan  the  names  of  candidates  are  ar- 
ranged alphabetically  at  the  primary ;  the  names  of  the  ten  men 
having  the  highest  number  of  votes  at  the  primary  are  placed 
upon  the  election  ballot,  also  alphabetically,  and  the  five  receiv- 
ing the  greatest  number  of  votes  at  the  election  are  declared  com- 
missioners. There  are  no  party  names  on  the  ticket;  it  is  not 
possible  to  put  a  cross  in  a  square  at  the  top  of  a  column  and 
vote  for  all  the  men.  So  the  voter  must  know  each  man  for 
whom  he  votes,  and  since  he  only  has  to  vote  for  five,  his  choice 
is  comparatively  easy  and  intelligent.  The  five  men  elected  ap- 
point all  the  other  municipal  officers ;  the  voter  selects  only  the 
five. 

Non-partisan  Election 

The  non-partisan  primary  and  election  is  regarded  as  putting 
a  premium  on  intelligence,  and  at  the  same  time  greatly  simplify- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  pr 

ing  election ;  it  is  also  said  to  have  practically  abolished  partisan 
politics  in  the  city. 

The  outcome  of  the  election  was  to  place  in  power  a  former 
police  judge,  two  union  labor  men,  a  former  mayor  and  a  former 
city  assessor,  a  board  not  particularly  in  favor  of  the  new  plan. 
These  men  began  their  duties  in  April,  1908,  and  have  just  com- 
pleted their  first  year.     What  are  the  results? 

In  the  character  of  the  work  done  by  officials  and  employes, 
one  item  which  affords  fair  comparison,  there  has  been  a  marked 
change.  Where  formerly  men  were  retained  on  account  of  their 
"influence"  with  the  council,  they  are  now  subject  to  discharge 
by  the  foreman  for  incompetency  or  drunkenness.  The  chief 
clerk  of  the  department  of  streets  and  public  improvements  states 
that  in  the  old  days  it  took,  in  one  case,  three  men  a  day  and  a 
half  to  lower  the  level  of  a  catch  basin,  a  job  now  of  a  few 
hours.  Recently  the  foreman  in  charge  of  a  sewer  repair  gang 
was  dismissed  because  the  work  of  his  gang  was  costing  too 
much,  a  thing  unheard  of  before.  It  is  the  general  verdict  that 
more  work  is  done  and  with  better  spirit  on  the  part  of  both 
the  heads  of  departments  and  the  employes,  than  ever  before 
in  the  history  of  the  city. 

Better  Public  Work 

In  comparative  cost  of  paving,  grading,  laying  of  sewers  and 
construction  of  bridges,  it  is  not  possible  to  make  any  study  that 
would  be  of  value,  since  varying  conditions  in  materials,  labor, 
length  of  haul,  character  of  soil  and  the  like  make  it  out  of 
the  question  to  find  jobs  of  similar  size  and  kind  to  compare. 
Careful  examination  of  detailed  statements  for  paving  and  other 
work  in  different  ways  showed  this  method  to  be  worthless. 
Only  in  the  case  of  cleaning  catch  basins  and  in  street  lighting 
were  conditions  sufficiently  alike  to  compare  the  cost  in  the  year 
preceding  April.  1908,  with  the  year  following.  In  the  former 
case  each  catch  basin  cost  $1.40  to  clean  each  time;  in  the  lat- 
ter, $1.12. 

In  street  lighting  a  detailed  statement  shows  the  large  sav- 
ing of  $10,322.60  in  one  year,  besides  the  cancellation  of  a  claim 
of  the  electric  company   for  $4,500.     The  present  rate   for  arc 


92  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

lights  is  $65  per  year;  it  was  $95  per  year  before  April,  1908. 
In  addition  603  lamps  formerly  on  moonlight  schedule  now 
burn  all  night  and  every  night,  4,000  hours  per  year,  a  gain 
of  1,818    hours  per  lamp  per  year. 

On  the  financial  side  the  showing  is  also  decided,  and,  so 
far  as  can  be  ascertained,  it  is  not  merely  a  showing,  but  a 
fact.  ^lodern  bookkeeping  methods  are  used,  the  reports  of  the 
various  departments  are  carefully  checked  over  and  all  moneys 
strictly  accounted  for.  Under  former  methods  a  police  justice 
failed  to  turn  over  several  thousands  of  dollars  of  fees  due  to 
the  city  until  a  careful  inspection  revealed  the  discrepancy,  and 
then  there  was  no  way  of  telling  whether  all  the  fees  were  turned 
over,  since  the  justice,  in  many  cases,  had  given  no  receipt 
to  those  who  paid  the  fees. 

Good  Business  Methods 

Money  was  also  allowed  to  remain  a  long  time  in  the  hands 
of  the  county  officers  before  being  paid  over  to  the  city ;  it  is  now 
secured  promptly.  Bills  are  paid  with  dispatch.  The  adminis- 
tration which  went  out  in  April,  1908,  left  $180,000  of  outstanding 
judgments  and  other  claims.  This  amount  the  new  government 
took  up  by  issuing  bonds  and  with  a  cleared  field  went  forward 
to  meet  current  expenses.  A  statement  by  the  city  auditor, 
John  W.  Hawk,  shows  that  on  March  31,  1909,  the  end  of  the 
first  fiscal  year  of  the  commission,  the  city  not  only  did  not 
have  any  outstanding  judgments  against  it,  but  had  $49,472.74 
more  in  its  working  funds  than  en  the  same  date  the  year  be- 
fore. From  the  most  conservative  viewpoint  the  new  govern- 
ment has  saved  at  least  $50,000  (approximately)  at  the  same  time 
that  it  has  done  more  work  than  ever  before  in  a  single  year. 

The  evidence  of  citizens  as  to  the  work  accomplished  is  most 
convincing.  Said  J.  E.  Tone  of  Tone  Bros.,  incorporated,  whole- 
sale coffee  and  spices : 

"The  streets  and  alleys  are  cleaner  under  the  new  plan;  one 
or  two  jobs  of  bad  paving  were  not  accepted ;  sidewalks  are 
being  laid  of  uniform  width  and  material — cement  with  an  iron 
strip  for  edging.  Police  regulations  are  better  enforced;  saloons 
are  about  the  same  as  usual,  but  slot  machines  have  been  sup- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  93 

pressed  and  the  red  light  district  broken  up,  its  denizens  being 
mainly  driven  out  of  the  city,  not  scattered.  The  fire  depart- 
ment, usually  efficient,  is  even  more  so  under  present  conditions, 
and  both  policemen   and   firemen  present  a   neater  appearance." 

Improvement  All  Around 

H.  T.  Blackburn,  cashier  of  the  Iowa  National  bank,  cor- 
roborated this  opinion,  declared  the  plan  had  worked  well,  and 
that  merchants  favored  it  as  a  great  improvement  over  the  old 
government.  He,  too,  emphasized  the  better  condition  of  the 
streets  and  added : 

"There  is  a  clear  cut  division  of  the  municipal  work  and 
officials  take  an  interest  in  their  duties."  F.  J.  Camp,  secretary 
and  manager  of  the  Brown-Hurley  Hardware  company,  spoke 
strongly  of  the  value  of  better  street  conditions  in  the  business 
section.  "The  new  method,"  he  said,  "makes  it  possible  to  lo- 
cate responsibility  at  the  city  hall  for  any  act  or  failure  of  the 
city  government,  and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  the 
plan  will  be  continued." 

A  large  property  owner  pointed  out  the  superiority  of  this 
new  system  over  the  old.  "Formerly,"  he  said,  "it  was  frequently 
impossible  to  find  any  one  at  the  city  hall ;  the  council,  being 
practically  unpaid,  gave  little  or  no  time  to  the  city's  business, 
meeting  nights  after  their  own  business  was  finished.  Men 
should  be  paid  to  devote  their  whole  time  to  the  work  of  the 
city ;  this  brings  responsibility  and  gives  good  results." 

Editor  William  Hale  of  the  Des  Moines  News,  and  Professor 
McNaul  of  Des  Mo!nes  college  spoke  enthusiastically  of  the  im- 
provement the  methods  have  brought  about.  Isaac  Friedlich,  a 
large  retail  clothing  merchant,  spoke  warmly  of  the  good  effects 
of  having  paid  commissioners  in  the  increased  promptness  of  at- 
tention to  business  and  the  general  improvement,  and  T.  J.  Wil- 
liams of  the  Williams  Buggy  company  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  some  of  the  commissioners  had  held  office  under  the  old 
government,  and  pointed  out  that  now  the  same  men  are  enabled 
to  do  better  work. 


t>4  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

Worth  Considering 

A  moment's  consideration  of  the  personnel  of  the  commis- 
sion is  worth  while.  In  view  of  the  wide  publicity  given  to  the 
Des  Moines  plan,  inquiry  naturally  arises  as  to  the  men  chosen 
to  carry  it  out.  Are  they  representative  citizens?  Do  they 
all  come  from  the  same  ward?  In  short,  what  are  their  charac- 
ters? 

In  the  first  place  it  should  be  noted  that  Des  Moines  retains 
the  old  name,  "city  council,"  to  designate  its  new  commission 
of  five.  The  mayor-commissioner,  who  has  charge  of  the  de- 
partment of  public  affairs  and  general  supervision  of  the  needs 
of  the  city,  is  A.  J.  Mathis,  a  former  police  judge  and  a  democrat, 
who  was  not  particularly  favorable  to  the  new  plan  at  the  outset. 
The  superintendent  of  accounts  and  finances  is  Charles  W. 
Schramm,  previously  city  assessor.  In  his  department  John 
W.  Hawk,  the  auditor,  was  assistant  auditor  for  many  years  and 
is  an  experienced  man. 

John  MacVicar,  mayor  twice  before,  is  now  head  of  the  de- 
partment of  streets  and  public  improvements.  He  has  been  sec- 
retary for  several  years  of  the  League  of  American  Municipali- 
ties, and  has  taken  a  great  interest  in  city  affairs.  Albert  C. 
Frisk,  chief  clerk  in  this  department,  occupied  a  similar  position 
for  several  years. 

John  L.  Hamery,  in  charge  of  the  department  of  public  safe- 
ty, is  a  union  labor  man,  a  journeyman  painter  by  trade.  He 
was  alderman  in  1907  and  has  made  a  record  in  police  matters, 
cleaning  up  the  city  with  energy  and  decision. 

J.  W.  Ash,  at  the  head  of  parks  and  public  property,  used 
to  be  a  coal  miner  and  was  a  deputy  sheriff  for  one  term.  He 
is  another  union  labor  man. 

East  Side  of  Des  Moines 

The  east  side  of  Des  Moines — for  the  city  is  divided  by  the 
Des  Ivloines  river — contains  the  state  capitol  and  a  business 
section  of  its  own,  not  so  large,  however,  as  on  the  west  side. 
Mayor  Mathis  and  Commissioner  Ash  come  from  the  east  side; 
the  others  live  west  of  the  river.    There  are  both  republicans  and 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  95 

democrats  on  the  board ;  union  labor  is  represented ;  there  is 
no  tendency  discernible  to  choose  the  commissioners  from  any 
one  section  of  the  city,  nor  from  any  one  profession  or  class. 

This  Des  Moines  plan,  is  the  "Galveston  plan  improved,"  as 
one  man  expressed  it.  To  the  commission  is  given  large  powers^ 
authority  to  pass  ordinances,  to  determine  the  duties  and  fix  the 
salaries  of  city  employes,  to  create  or  discontinue  offices,  remove 
subordinates  and  transfer  employes  from  one  office  to  another. 
A  majority  vote  rules,  the  mayor  having  no  veto,  Des  Moines 
following  in  this  respect  the  Galveston  plan  rather  than  that 
at  Houston. 

With  these  large  powers  go  three  checks  of  great  importance, 
which  make  the  commissioners  strictly  accountable  to  the  people — 
the  recall,  the  referendum,  and  the  non-partisan  primary  and  elec- 
tion already  described.  Any  ordinance  not  satisfactory  to  the 
people  may,  upon  petition  of  25  per  cent  of  the  voters  at  the 
last  election,  be  submitted  to  popular  vote  and  does  not  become 
effective  unless  ratified  by  a  majority  of  those  voting  upon  it. 
This  safeguard  is  especially  valuable  in  the  case  of  franchises,, 
aimed,  as  it  is,  to  prevent  the  council  from  giving  away  the 
city's  rights. 

Under  Eye  of  Constituents 

Moreover,  there  is  a  referendum  as  to  commissioners,  for  the 
recall  is  simply  a  means  or  referring  a  commissioner  back  to  his 
constituents  for  approval  or  disapproval.  Upon  petition  of  25 
per  cent  of  the  voters  the  man  whose  recall  is  demanded  must 
stand  at  once  as  candidate  for  re-election ;  anyone  else  may 
be  nominated  at  the  same  time,  and,  upon  having  a  majority 
of  votes,  is  elected  in  place  of  the  unsatisfactory  commissioner. 
This  promises  to  be  a  most  efficient  means  of  control.  Twice 
has  it  been  threatened,  once  in  the  case  of  the  appointment  of 
a  chief  of  police.  It  has  not  yet  been  actually  used.  The  voters 
of  Los  Angeles,  however,  recently  had  occasion  to  use  this  power 
and  the  mayor,  threatened  with  recall,  resigned  rather  than  stand 
for   re-election. 

Provision  is  also  made  for  initiating  laws  in  case  the  council 
refuses  to  pass  them  when  generally  demanded,  but  in  practice 


96  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

this  feature  13  not  likely  to  be  much  used,  as  its  mere  existence 
tends  to  make  the  board  susceptible  to  public  opinion  . 

Publicity  is  provided  for  by  requiring  a  monthly  statement 
of  all  receipts  and  expenditures,  which  is  published  in  the  news- 
papers. A  mimicipal  civil  service  commission  has  been  appointed 
and  has  begun  work.  It  will  be  some  time  longer,  however,  be- 
fore its  value  can  be  accurately  determined- 

Severe  Penalty 

A  severe  penalty  is  provided  for  bribery  and  even  for  agree- 
ing to  perform  services  for  a  candidate  in  return  for  mtnev 
-or  other  valnable  consideration. 

Finally,  it  is  provided  that  after  six  years  of  trial  any  city 
may  return,  if  it  so  desires,  to  its  former  method  of  govem- 
Etent-  The  adoption  of  the  plan  is  also  purely  optional  The 
trend  of  sentiment,  however,  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  whereas 
the  first  act,  that  of  1907,  made  the  plan  applicable  to  cities  of 
25.OQO  population  and  over,  an  amendment  passed  by  the  legis- 
lature in  April,  1909,  extends  it  to  cities  of  7,000  and  upward. 

Attend  a  meeting  of  the  cotmcil-commissioners.  Around  a 
plain  table,  on  which  there  are  a  telephone,  a  copy  of  the  city 
ordinances  and  various  papers.  ?:t  Sve  men  discussing  plans,  put- 
ting motions,  receiving  c:r  rions.  etc  There  is  no  noise, 
no  loud  disputing,  no  par L  11:1  ctiry  wrangling.  All  meetings 
are  open  to  the  public;  reporters  and  a  few  citizens  nstsaUy  are 
presenL  The  business  is  commcnly  completed  in  an  hour  or  less. 
greetings  are  frequent,  often  every  day.  The  commissioners 
give  all  their  time,  and  receive  S3.000  a  year  each,  except  the 
mayor,  who  has  $3,500. 

Des  Moiaes  Plan 

This,  then,  b  the  Des  iloines  plan.    A  aty  board  of  Erectors, 

elected  at  large  by  the  mtmicipal  stockholders — die  voters — are 
given  adequate  power  to  transact  all  business,  but  they  are  sub- 
ject to  recall  for  cause,  and  their  ordinances  may  be  referred 
by  petition,  to  the  stockholders  for  ratification-  Their  proceed- 
ings must  be  published  each  month :  their  meetings  are  public ; 
their  municipal  duties  are  their  only  business,  and  they  are  paid. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  97 

The  showing  made  by  the  first  year's  operation  of  the  plan  is 
likely  to  result  in  its  continuance,  in  the  opinion  of  most  of 
those  interviewed. 

It  is  true  that  a  majority  of  the  commissioners  were  in  politics 
before ;  so  it  was  found  to  be  also  in  Houston  and  in  Cedar  Rap- 
ids. But  if  this  Galveston-Des  Moines  plan  can  take  the  average 
-citizen — politician  or  business  man — and  make  him  a  fairly  care- 
ful manager  of  city  business  it  will  do  what  few  maj-or-and- 
council  systems  have  done — it  will  give  us  a  large  degree  of 
municipal  efficiency. 

Why  is  Plan  Better? 

Why  does  this  plan  surpass  the  other?  For  the  same  reason 
that  the  New  England  town  meeting,  to  which  it  is  a  return 
in  principle,  surpassed  other  methods  of  reflecting  local  opinion. 
It  is  more  democratic.  It  connects  the  people  and  their  repre- 
sentatives very  directly;  the  commissioners  are  few  enough  to  be 
known ;  each  is  in  charge  of  a  department,  and  the  referendum 
and  recall  make  it  possible  for  the  people,  knowing  now  who 
is  responsible,  effectively  to  control  their  agents.  This  control  is 
undoubtedly  greater  with  these  two  features  than  without  them, 
unless,  as  in  the  case  of  Galveston,  the  city  is  governed  by  un- 
usually able  and  unselfish  men,  and  its  citizens  moved  by  an  un- 
common  spirit. 

Where  the  people  have  no  vote  in  municipal  affairs,  as  in 
Washington,  conditions  may  present  a  somewhat  different  as- 
pect, and  there  may  well  be  a  question  as  to  the  relative  ad- 
vantages of  a  single  head  or  a  commission  of  three  or  five.  This 
problem  will  demtand  attention  later.  Staunton,  Va.,  presents 
the  case  of  a  city  with  one  general  manager. 


Wealth  (Des  Moines),  i:  4-6.  July,  1909. 

Year  under  the  Des  Moines  Plan.    Henry  E.  Sampson. 

The  city  is  now  for  the  first  time  receiving  interest  on  all 
of  her  deposits.  For  the  year  just  past  she  has  been  drawing 
four  per  cent  on  time  deposits  and  two  per  cent  on  daily  balances. 


98  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

During  the  course  of  the  first  year  under  the  Des  Moines  plan 
the  interest  on  the  funds  of  the  city  amounted  to  $9,132.17. 

By  making  a  more  favorable  contract  with  the  lighting  com- 
panies the  city  was  able  to  decrease  the  amount  of  its  lighting 
bill  for  the  year  from  $66,243,  what  it  was  under  the  old  system, 
to  $60,694;  a  saving  to  the  city  of  $5,549-  If  the  city  is  successful 
in  the  suit  now  in  litigation  there  will  be  another  substantial  de- 
crease, so  that  the  amount  saved  by  the  city  on  lighting  bills 
for  one  year  will  total  the  sum  of  $10,332.  The  city  has  also  been 
able  to  secure  a  gain  of  1818  hours  per  lamp  per  year  on  603 
lamps,  or  a  total  gain  of  1,126,254  hours. 

Under  the  old  administration  a  contract  was  let  to  pave 
Grand  Avenue  bridge  with  creosote  blocks  at  $4.47  per  sq.  yard ; 
under  the  Des  Moines  plan  the  city  did  its  own  work  in  pavingr 
the  Walnut  Street  bridge  with  the  same  kind  of  material,  at  the 
rate  of  $4.09  per  sq.  yard,  and  saved  the  city  almost  $1200  on  the 
job. 

During  its  last  year  the  old  system  cleaned  2272  catch  basins 
at  an  average  cost  of  $1.40,  while  under  the  Des  Moines  plan 
3861  catch  basins  were  cleaned  at  an  average  cost  of  $1.12  and 
3-10  cents,  a  saving  to  the  city  of  $1069.25. 

Under  the  new  plan  the  city  was  able  to  put  in  a  culvert  on 
North  Street,  at  a  cost  of  but  $12.63  per  cubic  yard,  while  in 
1907,  one  of  its  contractors  charged  the  old  city  government 
$17.61  per  cubic  yard  for  putting  in  a  similar  kind  of  a  culvert 
on  Easton  Boulevard. 

The  city  has  been  able  to  get  closer  prices  and  the  advantages 
of  a  liberal  discount  since  they  have  begun  to  pay  cash  for  what 
they  buy.  The  total  amount  saved  from  this  source  together 
with  that  which  was  made  during  the  year  by  some  settlements 
amounted  to  almost  $6,000. 

The  superintendent  of  parks  and  public  property  has  been 
renting  the  farms  belonging  to  the  city,  selling  hay,  grain  and 
fruit  grown  on  the  city's  property,  granting  concessions  in  the 
parks  on  good  terms,  and  doing  his  own  mowing  at  three-fourths 
what  it  cost  the  old  park  board  under  the  old  system. 

The  police  department  was  managed  last  year  for  $8,000  less 
than  was  used  the  year  previous,  while  the  health  department  un- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  991 

<ler  the  Des  Moines  plan  was  supported  at  $1,400  less  expense 
than  it  took  under  the  old  system. 

It  will  be  noticed  from  the  above  that  the  introduction  of 
business  methods  into  the  conduct  of  the  city's  affairs  has  been 
one  of  the  things  which  has  thus  far  characterized  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  Des  Moines  plan.  Its  businesslike  management 
has  been  in  striking  contrast  with  the  unsatisfactory  administra- 
tion of  public  affairs  under  the  old  system,  and  has  resulted  in  a 
saving  of  thousands  of  dollars  to  tax  payers.  The  commissioners 
are  devoting  their  entire  time,  thought  and  energy  to  the  one 
great  question  of  how  to  use  the  public  funds  entrusted  to  their 
■care  in  the  way  most  certain  to  provide  the  greatest  good  to  the 
largest  number  and  at  the  least  expense  to  each  individual  tax 
payer. 

After  a  careful  investigation  of  the  year's  work  the  most  con- 
servative would  not  hesitate  to  say  that  the  city  of  Des  Moines 
lias  been  economically  managed  in  every  way,  and  that  better 
results  have  been  accomplished  in  every  department  under  the 
Des  Moines  plan  than  ever  before. 


NEGATIVE  DISCUSSION 


American    Political    Science   Association,   Proceedings,    1906. 
pp.  58-66. 

Newport  Chart,er.     Rear  Admiral   F.   E.   Chadwick. 

N-ewport,  with  the  exception  of  three  years,  was  until  1853 
administered  under  the  town-meeting  system.  It  had,  in  1784, 
made  a  trial  of  a  city  charter,  but  it  was  so  unsatisfactory  that  it 
reverted  to  the  town-meeting  three  years  later. 

The  town-meeting  may  thus  be  taken  as  Newport's  form  of 
government  for  two  hundred  and  more  years.  In  1853,  when  a 
new  trial  of  a  charter  was  made,  the  place  had  about  12,000  in- 
habitants, half  its  present  number.  That  it  was  still  not  too 
large  for  the  town-meeting  system  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
Boston  remained  a  town  until  1822,  at  which  time  it  had  43,ooo 
population.  Brookline,  perhaps  the  most  admirably  administered 
community  in  the  United  States,  remains  a  town,  although  with 
a  population  of  25,000,  and  an  electorate  of  about  4,100. 

Newport,  with  its  city  government  of  the  usual  kind  in  the 
United  States — a  mayor,  a  board  of  five  aldermen  and  a  council 
of  fifteen  members — was  no  worse  off  than  most  other  places. 
The  system  is  simply  fundamentally  bad,  and  can,  under  our 
electoral  methods,  only  work  towards  an  oligarchy,  and  this 
oligarchy,  as  a  rule,  made  up,  to  put  it  mildly,  of  not  the  best 
citizens.  Our  cities  have  copied  the  patterns  of  government  es- 
tablished for  the  states,  i.  e.,  a  governor,  a  lower  and  an  upper 
house ;  a  system  excellent  for  a  state  in  which  the  legislature  is 
a  law-making  body,  but  foolish  for  a  town  in  which  the  chief 
concern  is  administration.  So  far  have  we  carried  imitation, 
that  the  mayor  of  the  pettiest  city  now  indulges  in  his  inaugural 
address,  quite  after  the  manner  of  the  President  of  the  United 
States. 


102  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Newport  is  one  of  the  several  small  places  peculiarly  con- 
ditioned. It  is  without  manufactures  or  commerce,  ana  its  wlU- 
being  depends  entirely  upon  the  fact  that  a  large  nuniuer  of 
wealthy  peoph  have  adopted  it  as  a  summer  residence,  ihis  class 
pays  63  per  cent  of  the  taxes,  the  total  of  which  in  1906  was 
$573.754-8o,  on  a  real  estate  valuation  of  $36,001,600,  and  a  person- 
al of  $11,811,300,  or  a  total  of  about  $48,000,000.  The  tax  rate 
was  $12.00  the  thousand. 

It  would  be  supposed  that  common  sense  would  lead  to  the 
nursing  of  the  goodwill  of  such  a  valuable  element  as  are  our 
summer  residents,  and  this  is  undoubtedly  the  attitude  of  the  mass 
of  our  citizens,  but  there  has  not  been  heretofore  the  intelligence 
in  the  city  government  itself  to  recognize  this.  Broadly  speakuig 
there  has  been  not  so  much  an  antagonistic  as  a  careless  attitude 
towards  the  summer  people  on  the  part  of  the  government,  which, 
for  instance,  saw  greater  advantages  in  laying  concrete  sidewalks 
(wholly  at  the  city's  expense,  be  it  said)  in  the  voting  districts, 
than  in  spending  the  money  on  the  upkeep  of  the  roads  so  neces- 
sary for  the  use  of  pleasure  vehicles. 

The  result  of  the  general  dissatisfaction  with  this  crude  and 
unintelligent  attitude  of  the  administrative  authorities  was  the 
formation  in  September,  1905,  of  a  municipal  association  devoted 
to  bettering  municipal  conditions  which  limited  its  membership  to 
those  who  were  willing  to  support  principles  which  may  be  con- 
densed as  follows :  the  use  of  the  referendum,  by  which  is  meant 
the  right  and  opportunity  of  the  citizens  to  vote  upon  all  import- 
ant matters  affecting  the  property  and  welfare  of  the  city;  the 
careful  safeguarding  of  the  city's  property  and  franchise  rights 
and  the  conduct  of  its  business  upon  business  principles ;  that 
citizenship  involves  a  responsibility  that  can  not  be  evaded  or 
ignored  without  contributing  to  the  forces  of  evil ;  that  by  nomin- 
ations of  its  own  or  through  the  endorsement  of  nominations  by 
others  the  association  will  seek  to  secure  the  choice  of  the  best 
men  available,  irrespective  of  party. 

The  municipal  election  of  1905  did  not  materially  better 
matters,  and  it  was  determined  by  the  association  to  endeavor  to 
formulate  a  new  charter  which  might  enable  the  city  to  work 
towards   something  better  than   what  it  has   been   experiencing. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  103 

A  committee  of  27  was  named  by  the  association,  care  being  taken 
to  select  both  political  parties,  and  it  may  be  said  that,  apart 
from  question  of  races  (and  we  hav^e  many  in  Newport),  that 
the  committee  represented  every  phase  of  our  population. 

In  the  first  offgo,  the  chief  idea  was  to  give  the  mayor 
much  greater  power;  an  idea  prevalent  everywhere  in  the  United 
States  and  indicative  of  a  weakening  of  the  self-reliance  so 
necessary  to  the  continued  existence  of  popular  government. 
A  vote  in  favor  of  this  extension  of  the  mayor's  power  as  a 
fundamental  was  thus  carried  at  one  of  the  earliest  meetings. 
Inquiries  were  sent  officially  to  various  places  requesting  copies 
of  new  charters,  and  private  inquiries  were  also  made  by  mem- 
bers. A  letter  from  the  secretary  of  the  City  Club  of  New 
York,  in  response  to  one  of  the  latter,  gave  a  clue  which  re- 
sulted in  the  adoption  of  an  entirely  new  course.  The  secre- 
tary said  he  had  heard  that  Mr.  Alfred  D.  Chandler,  of  Brook- 
line,  Massachusetts,  had  some  particular  views  as  to  charters. 
Correspondence  with  M.  Chandler  brought  his  views  developed 
in  a  bill  which  he  had  formulated  for  presentation  to  the  Mas- 
sachusetts legislature,  but  which  was  never  presented.  This 
proposed  bill  was  the  outcome  of  the  apprehension  of  some 
of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Brookline  that  the  growth  of  their 
electorate  might  tend  to  make  their  town  meeting  unwieldy.  Sev- 
eral tried  their  hands  on  proposed  charters,  but  Mr.  Chandler's 
draft,  clinging  to  the  town-meeting  principle,  proposed  what  he 
called  a  "limited  town  meeting,"  of  240  persons,  to  be  elected 
by  the  whole  electorate,  and  to  have  the  powers  of  the  full 
town  meeting.  It  was  this  prinicple  which  the  Newport  committee 
of  the  Municipal  Association  adopted  and  built  upon.  The  re- 
sulting charter,  in  its  essential,  is  broadly  as  follows :  The  gov- 
erning power  is  vested  in  a  body  of  195,  thirty-nine  from  each 
ward,  to  which  is  assigned  the  name  of  Representative  Council, 
which  has  the  powers  in  general  of  a  town  meeting;  the  execu- 
tive, in  a  mayor  and  five  aldermen  (one  alderman  from  each 
ward),  elected  for  one  year;  these,  speaking  generally,  have  the 
powers  of  selectmen  of  a  town.  The  cause  of  the  choice  in 
Newport  of  the  particular  number,  195,  for  the  Representative 
Council,  was  due  to  the  wards  being  five  in  number ;  to  the  mak- 


104  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

ing  the  term  of  office  three  years ;  and  to  the  renewal  of  one- 
third  of  the  Council  yearly.  This  number  was  also  regarded  as 
a  fair  mean ;  as  not  too  large  for  orderly  procedure,  and  large 
enough  to  be  fairly  representative  of  all  classes  in  a  place  of 
25.000  inhabitants.  In  a  larger  town  it  could  very  properly  be 
raised  to  as  many  say  as  300,  which  would  not  at  all  be  exces- 
sive, there  being  many  deliberative  bodies  in  the  world  of  such 
numbers. 

It  was  arranged  that  in  the  first  election  nominations  should 
be  made  of  thirteen  members  for  one  year,  and  the  same  number 
for  two  and  for  three  years ;  thereafter  thirteen  new  mem- 
bers would  be  elected  each  year  in  each  ward.  Under  the  con- 
stitution of  the  state  of  Rhode  Island,  no  person  is  allowed  to 
vote  in  the  election  of  the  city  council  of  any  city,  or  upon  any 
proposition  to  impose  a  tax  or  for  the  expenditure  of  money 
in  any  town  or  city,  unless  he  shall  within  the  year  next  pre- 
ceding have  paid  a  tax  assessed  upon  property  valued  at  least 
at  $134.  This  confines  the  votes  for  members  of  the  Represen- 
tative Council  to  about  3,800  of  the  5.100  of  the  general  elec- 
torate of  the  city.  The  only  persons  under  the  law  voted  for 
by  the  whole  of  the  electorate  are  the  mayor  and  school  board : 
the  aldermen  were  placed  by  the  charter  under  those  voted  for  by 
the  tax-paying  vote. 

The  election,  in  order  to  separate  it  from  party  elections, 
is  fixed  for  the  first  Monday  in  December ;  nomination  papers 
are  filed  with  the  city  clerk  at  least  twelve  days  before  this 
date;  all  candidates  must  give  a  written  acceptance  of  candidacy; 
thirty  signatures  at  least  of  tax-paying  voters  in  the  ward  are 
necessary  to  nominate  for  the  Representative  Council ;  one 
hundred  of  tax-paying  voters  of  the  city  to  nominate  for  alder- 
men ;  one  hundred  of  the  general  electorate  to  nominate  for  the 
school  committee;  and  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  general 
electorate  to  nominate  for  ma3'or.  No  one  can  sign  the  papers 
of  more  persons  than  he  is  allowed  to  vote  for.  Though  the 
aldermen  must  be  residents  of  the  wards  for  which  they  stand, 
they  are  voted  for  by  the  whole  of  the  tax-payinsr  voters  of  the 
city;  the  influence  of  ward  feeling  which  so  foolishly  and  un- 
reasonably   exists    is    thus    largely    eliminated    in    the    election. 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  105 

Nothing  can  appear  upon  the  nomination  papers  except  the  name, 
residence  and  acceptance  of  tlie  candidate,  the  ofilice  for  which 
nominated,  and  the  names  and  addresses  of  the  nominators. 
Nothing  can  appear  upon  the  ballots  except  the  name  of  the 
candidate,  his  residence,  the  office  for  which  nominated,  and 
such  other  non-political  facts  as  the  laws  of  the  state  require. 

The  Representative  Council  meets  the  first  Monday  in  Jan- 
uary, or  at  such  times  as  it  may  adjourn  to;  it  must  also  meet 
upon  the  written  request  of  twenty-five  members  or  upon  the 
request  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen ;  such  requests  to  be  filed  with 
the  city  clerk;  it  chooses  its  own  chairman;  the  city  clerk  is 
the  clerk  also  of  the  Council ;  it  determines  its  own  rules  and 
judges  of  the  election  of  its  members ;  its  meetings  must  be  with 
open  doors  and  its  records  open  to  public  inspection ;  any 
tax  payer  or  voter  may  speak,  but  unless  a  member,  shall  not 
vote  at  its  meetings ;  no  compensation  is  allowed  its  members. 

The  Representative  Council  at  the  beginning  of  the  year 
elects  a  city  treasurer,  a  city  clerk,  a  judge  of  probate,  a  pro- 
bate clerk,  a  collector  of  taxes,  a  city  solicitor,  an  assessor  of 
taxes,  and  all  such  other  city  officers  provided  by  law  or  as  may 
be  necessary  and  proper.  It  may  delegate  to  the  Board  of  Alder- 
men the  election  of  any  officers  not  specially  named,  or  by  special 
act  required  to  be  elected  by  the  Council ;  it  fixes  salaries  and 
defines  the  duties  of  officers ;  it  may  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of 
all  the  members  remove  an  officer  for  misconduct  or  incapacity. 

A  very  important  procedure  was  taken  from  the  usage  of 
Brodkline.  On  the  first  meeting  in  January,  the  chairman  of 
the  Representative  Council  appoints  a  committee  of  twenty-five 
members,  five  from  each  ward,  to  consider  the  budget  for  the 
ensuing  year,  and  make  report  to  an  adjourned  meeting.  This 
report  must  be  printed  and  distributed  to  all  tax-paying  voters 
at  least  seven  days  before  the  meeting  of  the  Council  to  con- 
sider it.  Every  one  is  thus  fully  informed  in  regard  to  the 
proposed  expenditure  before  the  subject  comes  to  a  vote.  A 
vote  of  the  Council  in  favor  of  any  proposition  involving  the 
expenditure  of  ten  thousand  dollars  or  more  does  not  become 
-operative  for  seven  days;  if  in  this  time  a  petition  be  filed  with 
the  city  clerk,  signed  by  at  least  ten  qualified  electors  from  each 


io6  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

ward,  in  addition  to  at  least  one  hundred  qualified  electors  of 
the  city,  the  question  must  be  submitted  to  the  people.  A  peti- 
tion of  a  hundred  qualified  electors  may  also  oblige  the  Council 
to  consider  a  question  involving  an  expenditure  exceeding  ten 
thousand  dollars ;  if  this  be  disapproved  by  the  Council,  a  refer- 
endum to  the  people  may  be  called  for  by  twice  the  number  of 
petitioners  in  the  preceding  case. 

The  mayor  is  president  and  ex-officio,  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Aldermen.  The  mayor  may  investigate  all  depart- 
ments and  has  power  to  suspend  any  city  official,  and  bring  the 
case  before  the  whole  Board  of  Aldermen.  If  the  board  sus- 
tain the  charges,  the  official  is  dismissed;  if  not,  he  is  restored 
to  duty.  The  official  has  ten  days,  however,  in  which  to  take 
appeal  to  the  Representative  Council,  whose  action  is  final. 

The  Board  of  Aldermen  form  the  several  committees  for  the 
administration  of  the  city  departments ;  it  reports  their  con- 
dition, with  recommendations,  annually  to  the  Representative 
Council,  which  report  must  be  published ;  it  also  attends  the 
meetings  of  the  Council  and  gives  such  information  as  may  be 
required.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  receive  salaries  to  be  fixed 
by  the  Council,  but  may  receive  no  other  compensation  for 
services  rendered  the  city ;  they  may  not  be  interested  in  any 
city  contract  nor  may  any  of  them,  stockholders  in  a  corporation, 
vote  upon  a  proposition  or  with  reference  to  a  contract  between 
the  city  and   such   corporation. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  system  developed  in  this  charter  is 
one  of  extreme  simplicity.  It  unites  all  legislative  power  in  a 
single  body,  and  establishes  a  small  committee  to  carry  the  au- 
thority of  this  body  into  effect ;  it  brings  back  to  the  people 
in  a  very  effective  degree  the  authority  which  has  been  taken 
from  them  by  political  rings  and  combines ;  it  separates  the 
municipal  from  state  and  national  elections;  it  separates  the 
power  authorizing  the  spending  of  money,  from  the  power  which 
expends,  thus  vastly  increasing  the  difficulty  of  a  vicious  com- 
bine ;  in  the  words  of  the  "Explanatory  Statement"  which  ac- 
companied the  act  when  brought  before  the  legislature,  it  "is 
absolutely  open  to  the  knowledge  of  all  the  people ;  gives  the 
right  to  every  one   to   speak  upon  any  proposition ;   allows  no 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  107 

opportunity  to  stifle  any  question ;  makes  it  easy  for  any  one  to 
bring  forward  any  subject  for  consideration;  opens  the  budget 
to  full  inspection  and  discussion  by  the  people  before  it  is 
adopted  ;  in  a  word,  makes  the  public  the  master  it  should  be  in 
all  questions  affecting  its  civic  welfare."  It  does  all  this  and 
effectively,  in  case  the  people  are  equal  to  governing  themselves. 
My  own  belief  is  that  they  are.  I  have  a  firm  faith  in  the 
wish  and  capacity  of  the  mass  of  men,  if  their  hands  are  free, 
to  do  that  which  is  best  for  their  community.  Were  this  not 
so,  it  is  plain  that  we  should  always  be  on  the  retrograde.  Our 
political  woes  are  due  to  the  fact  that  the  public  will  has  not 
free  expression  in  our  country  today,  in  either  national,  state,  or 
municipal  questions.  It  is  the  oligarchic  rule  which  permeates 
our  system,  v^hich  is  our  bane.  The  great  problem  is  to  get  back 
to  the  people ;  in  the  New^port  charter  I  believe  we  have  done 
this  for  Newport,  effectively. 

It  is  of  course  vain  to  hope  that  partisan  politics  will  all 
at  once,  or  perhaps  ever,  wholly  be  eliminated.  The  idea  of 
always  lining  up  on  party  lines  has  become  too  deeply  ingrained 
in  the  less  thoughtful  of  our  electorate  throughout  the  country 
to  expect  this  and  there  are  sure  to  be  many  representatives 
in  the  council  to  whom  petty  likes  and  dislikes  will  be  much 
more  than  the  city's  welfare.  How  great  the  influence  of  such 
feeling  is,  was  shown  in  the  charter  election  December  4,  when, 
with  three  exceptions,  the  representatives  of  the  summer  resi- 
dents, our  chief  tax  payers,  failed  of  election.  Our  electorate 
is  not  wise  or  broad  enough  to  see  the  unfairness  of  refusing 
representation  to  such  an  interest,  and  that  such  action  prac- 
tically establishes  "taxation  without  representation." 

A  short  comparison  of  our  Newport  charter  with  its  most 
antipodal  one  of  Galveston,  is  not  inappropriate.  This  latter 
replaces  a  government  of  a  mayor  and  sixteen  aldermen  with  one 
by  five  commissioners.  Three  of  these  were  in  the  first  offgo 
appointed  by  the  governor,  but  a  question  as  to  the  constitution- 
ality of  this  procedure,  on  the  ground  that  the  citizens  had  no 
voice  in  the  selection  of  the  officers  administering  their  govern- 
ment, being  decided  adversely,  the  whole  five  are  now  elective. 
With  these  five   rest  all  the  powers  of  the  city:   the  selection 


io8  .       COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

of  officers,  the  establishment  of  ordinances,  the  levying  and 
assessment  of  taxes,  and  all  administrative  functions.  Thus  far 
the  scheme  has  been  very  successful ;  this  success  being  one  of 
course  due  wholly  to  the  character  of  the  commissioners.  The 
great  question  is  how  long  the  city  will  be  able  to  elect  such. 
It  is  safe  to  predict  that  it  will  end,  as  all  such  efforts,  if  ex- 
perience teaches  anything,  in  the  election  of  the  seeker  after 
power,  and  the  city  in  the  hands  of  its  five  administrators  and 
governors  will  be  no  better  off  than  in  the  hands  of  its  former 
sixteen. 


Defects  of  Commission  Plan.     Prof.  F.  I.  Herriott. 

City  government,  although  it  is  not,  as  is  to  be  generally 
assumed,  easy  to  conduct  as  a  bank,  must  be  ^managed  upon 
business  principles.  By  business  principles  we  mean  methods  of 
procedure  whereby  men  obtain  the  maximum  of  benefits,  income 
or  profits  with  the  minimum  of  expense.  The  result  can  only 
be  secured  by  efficiency  in  administration. 

In  these  days  efficiency  is  dependent  upon  division  of  labor 
and  central,  uniform  control  and  management.  Instead  of  hav- 
ing one  man  and  all  men  doing  or  trying  to  do  everything 
and  anything,  we  separate  and  specialize.  A  man  confines  him- 
self to  particular  tasks  and  does  this  or  that  kind  of  work  and 
nothing  else.  Such  sub-division  of  work  develops  and  requires 
experts  or  specialists.  To  become  an  expert  takes  a  long  ap- 
prenticeship of  systematic  education  and  study.  One  who  be- 
comes trained  thus,  who  becomes  an  expert  or  specialist,  is 
the  exceptional  man  in  a  community  or  state.  There  are  but 
few,  if  any,  besides  him  who  possess  such  skill  or  technical 
knowledge.  He  dees  not  care  much  for  popular  opinion,  be- 
cause he  knows  that  the  average  man  does  not  know  what  he 
knows  and  cannot  know  unless  he  undergoes  a  similar  apprentice- 
ship or  education.  The  expert  civil  engineer  that  bridges  the 
canyons  of  Colorado  or  tunnels  the  mountains  despises  public 
opinion  as  worthless.  The  public  says  the  thing  cannot  be  done; 
the  engineer  does  it  nevertheless. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  109 

Caring  nothing  for,  if  not  despising  public  opinion,  cities 
cannot  secure  such  expert  ability  in  administration  by  popular 
election.  No  specialist  will  coddle  the  public  to  secure  his  elec- 
tion;  he  will  not  stultify  himself,  either,  by  reversing  his  real 
opinion  on  scientific  or  technical  matters ;  and  he  will  not  asK 
its  suffrages  and  undergo  the  horrible  mud-slinging  of  political 
campaigns.  He  will  serve  the  public,  but  only  on  certain  con- 
ditions. 

If  we  would  secure  the  expert  in  city  administration,  we  must 
obtain  his  services  by  selection  or  appointment  and  insuring  him 
certainty  or  permanency  of  authority,  responsibility  and  support. 
We  cannot  secure  him  or  his  services  in  any  other  way — because 
city  governments  are  subject  to  the  same  conditions  that  control 
in  private  or  corporate  business  enterprises ;  and  only  in  this  way 
do  successful  business  houses  obtain  specialists  and  benefit  from 
their  services. 

The  Galveston  plan  proposes  and  its  advocates  maintain  that 
we  secure  by  popular  election  at  least  four  city  officers  to  take 
charge  of  the  technical  departments  of  city  administration,  viz. : 
commissioners  of  "Streets  and  Public  Property,"  of  "Police  and 
Fire,"  of  "Finance,"  of  "Water  Works  and  Sewage."  In  each  case 
success  in  the  conduct  of  such  departments  requires  expert  abili- 
ty, either  long  familiarity  with  and  training  in  such  lines,  or 
technical  knowledge  and  special  skill.  Universal  experience 
shows  that  we  cannot  get  such  servants  by  resort  to  the  polls, 
with  the  frightful  hair-pulling  and  dirt-throwing  of  city  cam- 
paigns. For  a  brief  spell,  perhaps,  we  might  succeed  in  getting 
men  of  high  average  ability,  because  in  the  first  flush  of  the 
revival  of  civic  virtue  incident  to  such  a  radical  change  we  should 
compel,  by  draft  as  it  were,  prominent  and  successful  men  to 
take  the  offices.  But  such  a  condition  would  not  last.  Public 
fervor  would  soon  decline,  and  then  poor  men,  then  bad  men, 
would  get  control,  as  sure  as  two  and  two  make  four. 

The  Galveston  plan  cuts  at  the  very  roots  of  official  account- 
ability and  responsibility ;  and,  strangely  enough,  it  is  because 
the  advocates  believe  tliat  the  reform  enhances  or  secures  re- 
sponsible control  that  they  urge  it. 

Under  its  method  we  first  attempt  to  secure  by  election  ex- 


no  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

perts,  which  we  seldom  or  never  can  do.  Thereupon  these  so- 
called  experts,  by  agreement  or  disagreement,  by  lot  or  by  bal- 
lot, assign  each  man  to  that  particular  department  to  which 
they  believe  he  is  best  fitted.  It  will  be  a  marvel  if  bickering 
envy  and  spite  do  not  develop  vigorously  in  determining  such 
assignments.  However  this  may  be,  it  is  clear  that  such  a 
method  of  election  or  assignment  will  deprive  a  city  of  the 
services  of  experts  in  our  technical  departments. 

Another  most  serious  defect  is  the  fact  that  the  commission 
must,  if  it  fulfills  its  purposes,  constantly  upset  accountability. 
The  commissioners  are  expected  not  only  to  legislate  or  pass 
ordinances,  but  at  the  same  time  to  "manage"  or  conduct  the 
business  of  the  city.  Now,  they  cannot  do  this  without  con- 
stantly and  seriously  intruding  into  the  several  departments. 
If  this  is  done,  accountability  or  responsibility  cannot  be  en- 
forced on  the  part  of  the  man  in  charge  of  the  department  in- 
terfered with. 

Accountability  means  that  a  man  charged  with  a  task  or  piece 
of  work  is  looked  to  as  individually  responsible  for  its  perform- 
ance. He  alone  and  no  one  else  is  held  therefore.  He  cannot 
divide  or  split  his  responsibility,  nor  can  he  lend  or  hand  it 
around.  It  is  specific,  direct  and  personal.  Furthermore,  if 
the  expert  is  to  be  held  accountable,  he  must  be  given  funds 
and  power  or  authority  to  take  full  charge  and  fulfill  without 
let  or  hindrance  the  specific  duty  required.  If  some  one  has 
power  to  intervene,  and  does  so  interpose,  he  can  neither  be  held 
accountable  nor  responsible. 

The  Galveston  commissioners  can  thus  interfere  at  any  time 
and  in  any  way  with  the  work  of  the  several  departments.  If 
they  do  not,  then  they  do  not  exercise  their  double  function 
of  legislation  and  execution.  Each  man  gets  complete  control 
of  his  department  and  they  severally  leave  each  other  alone. 
Again,  they  may  by  collusion  agree  to  let  each  man  run  his  own 
department  as  he  pleases,  for  reasons  far  from  righteous.  With 
so  much  power  it  will  not  be  strange  if  unholy  alliances  develop. 

The  passage  of  the  budget  bills  and  regulative  ordinances 
will  produce  "war"  if  nothing  else  does.  Each  man  will  seek  and 
demand  more  funds  and  more  authority  or  power.     But  funds 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  iii 

and  authority  will  be  limited.  All  cannot  get  what  each  insists 
upon.  Who  will  recede?  Who  must  give  way?  Debate  will 
generate  heat ;  heat  produces  fire ;  and  fire  burns  and  scorches ; 
and  concord  that  we  are  assuured  will  necessarily  prevail  under 
the  new  plan  will  go  glimmering  and  the  taxpayers  will  find 
themselves  helpless  in  the  clutches  of  men  who  both  pass  the  ordi- 
nances and  budget  bills  and  also  attend  personally  to  their  exe- 
cution and  administration. 

We  doubt  if  a  more  dangerous  measure  was  ever  urged  upon 
the  public  than  the  Galveston  plan,  whereby  the  traditions  of 
our  law  and  people  are  thus  upset. 


Comments   on   the  "Proposed   Galveston-Des   Moines  Plan" 
of  Government. 

Charles  O.  Holly. 

The   "Citizen's"   candidate   for  mayor,   at  the  last  city  election. 

(Published    and    distributed    by    the    Citizens'    committee 
opposing  the  "proposed  Galveston-Des  Moines  plan.") 

Stripped  of  all  argument,  erroneous  or  otherwise,  freed  from 
all  exclamatory  phrases,  denunciations  and  hysteria,  the  essence 
of  the  theory  of  those  who  support  the  so-called  "Des  Moines 
plan"  is  found  in  these  words  "centralization  is  the  cure  for  cor- 
ruption." The  people  are  to  be  deprived  of  power  to  elect  all 
of  their  public  servants,  except  the  legislative  body,  otherwise 
known  as  the  council  or  commission.  Contrary  to  all  of  the 
precedents  of  American  history,  all  the  legislative,  executive 
and  judicial  power  is  given  to  the  council.  The  council  can 
vacate  any  office,  can  create  any  office  and  without  limit  fix  any 
salary  it  chooses.  The  entire  officialdom,  outside  of  the  coun- 
cil, and  all  the  employees  and  servants  of  the  city  are  by  law 
made  the  agents,  servants  and  dependents  of  the  council.  This 
is  centralization  with  a  vengeance. 

A  political  machine  is  thus  created  that  the  electorate  will  not 
be  able  to  tear  a  wheel  from  in  a  generation.  As  I  said  the  propo- 
sition of  the  supporters  of  the  bill  is — "centralization  is  the  cure 


112  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

for  corruption."  This  is  not  true  to-day  and  it  never  was  true 
in  the  history  of  the  world.  Corruption  in  office  is  a  character 
condition.  It  is  not  a  matter  of  statutory  enactment.  It  is  true^ 
law  may  be  so  framed  as  to  be  especially  available  to  corrupt 
officials.  The  law  may  give  corrupt  men  an  opportunity  to 
plunder  the  people.  This  is  apt  to  be  the  case  where  there  is 
great  centralization.  A  man  who  is  corrupt  with  little  power 
will  be  worse  with  more,  all  other  things  being  equal.  Accounta- 
bility is  the  prime  check  on  corruption.  Centralization  is  a  step 
away  from  accountability.  In  Russia  accountability  is  at  a  min- 
imum and  the  government  is  vile  beyond  description.  In  Persia 
there  is  almost  no  accountability;  the  result  is  that  justice  is 
sold  like  sheep  in  the  shambles.  The  highest  amount  of  central- 
ization consistent  with  the  most  thorough  system  of  accountabil- 
ity, is  the  vital  essential  of  good  government.  Complete  central- 
ization without  accountability  is  despotism.  Disaster  always  re- 
sults from  such  a  condition ;  and  it  makes  no  difference  whether 
the  city  is  Des  Moines  or  St.  Petersburg. 

The  thing  that  interests  me  in  the  Des  Aloines  plan  is  how 
does  it  preserve  the  balance  between  centralization  and  account- 
ability. I  desire  to  know  the  details  and  the  principles  of  the 
legal  contrivance  by  which  it  is  proposed  to  centralize  power  and 
at  the  same  time  still  keep  the  power  responsive  to  the  will,  to 
the  heart  throbs  of  the  people.  Under  this  bill  none  of  the  city 
officials  or  employees  except  the  councilmen  themselves  have  any 
direct  accountability  to  the  people. 

The  people  elect  the  council  and  the  councilmen  elect  or  ap- 
point all  the  rest  of  the  city  officers,  deputies,  clerks  and  em- 
ployees, and  fix  all  their  salaries  and  their  duties,  absolutely  as 
they  see  fit,  and  may  even  create  offices  and  fix  the  salaries ; 
hence,  the  accountability  of  "appointee  officials"  is  to  the  city 
council  and  not  direct  to  the  people.  It  is  possible  that  the 
council  will  make  appointments  outside  of  the  members  of  the 
committee  of  300,  and  such  appointees  will  most  likely  be  like 
the  rest  of  us,  human  and  consequently  more  interested  in  the 
council  from  whom  they  get  their  positions  and  their  salaries 
and  by  whom  their  duties  are  prescribed  than  in  the  people,  and, 
so  without  any  special  effort  on  the  part  of  the  council,  there 
will  be  built  up  one  of  the  most  powerful  political  machines. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  113 

It  is  true,  the  council  is  elected  by  the  people  and  to  an  extent 
accountable  to  the  people ;  but  here  intervenes  the  most  powerful 
political  machine  ever  created  or  tolerated  in  our  midst  and 
created,  too,  by  lawr,  the  law  itself  shielding  the  council  from  the 
wrath  of  the  people  in  case  they  are  unfaithful  to  the  trust 
reposed  in  them.  It  is  thus  easy  to  see  how  accountability  can 
be  reduced  to  a  minimum,  while  centralization  remains  the  same. 
The  result  is  despotism. 

There  is  another  element  in  this  bill  bearing  on  accountability. 
It  is  the  "recall."  The  recall  as  a  legal  entity  implies  account- 
ability. Neither  hampered  by  the  language  of  artful  device,  nor 
involved  in  the  meshes  of  conditions  that  neutralize,  and,  merely 
as  a  legal  proposition  framed  into  law  to  actually  do  something, 
it  is  a  valiant  expedient  to  battle  for  the  people  and  should  have 
been  enlisted  long  ago  in  the  service  of  good  government.  In 
passing  it  may  not  be  improper  to  call  attention  to  the  amusing 
situation  in  which  some  of  the  present  friends  of  the  "recall," 
quondam  enemies  of  it,  now  appear  in  their  enthusiasm  for  this 
measure,  when  at  one  time,  other  men  who  favored  it  were 
called  by  them  cranks,  lunatics  and  socialists.  However,  it  is  not 
my  desire  to  make  their  late  conversion  at  all  embarrassing. 

The  "recall"  as  a  political  expedient,  should  be  as  free  as 
possible  from  "pull  conditions."  By  "pull  conditions,"  I  mean 
those  social,  political,  financial  and  various  other  relations  that 
tend  to  create  an  interest  in  and  an  obligation  to  a  man  or  set 
of  men  beyond  his  or  their  real  merits,  enabling  that  to  be 
obtained  by  these  influences,  which  could  not  be  obtained  on  the 
ground  of  merit.  The  framers  of  this  bill  have,  intentionally  or 
otherwise,  surrounded  the  "recall"  with  such  details  of  law  as  to 
make  it  especially  subject  to  "pull  conditions." 

By  the  "recall,"  in  this  instance,  is  meant  the  right  of  the 
people  to  file  a  petition  with  the  city  clerk,  its  object  being  to 
oust  a  dishonest  or  corrupt  councilman,  and  to  have  a  new  elec- 
tion to  put  in  a  better  man.  This  is  all  right  as  a  proposition, 
but  the  details  of  the  law  is  where  the  perplexity  arises.  When 
the  petition  for  the  removal  is  filed,  the  clerk  certifies  his  approval 
before  it  can  become  effective.  Now,  if  he  neglects  to  give  his 
certificate  of  approval,  the  ones  who  filed  the  petition  have  ten 


114  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

days  in  which  to  amend  and  in  case  he  then  refuses  to  give  it  his 
approval,  the  only  recourse  is  to  get  up  an  absolutely  new  peti- 
tion. Bear  in  mind  that  the  council  appoints  the  clerk  who  is  to 
approve  or  disapprove  of  the  petition  to  remove  all  or  any  of  the 
councilmen.  The  council  can  increase,  diminish  or  take  away  the 
clerk's  salary  at  any  time.  At  any  time  the  council  or  any  one  of 
its  members  can  actually  direct  him  in  each  and  all  of  his  duties. 
He  is  the  creature,  the  servant  and  employe  of  the  council. 
To  such  a  clerk  so  situated,  so  controlled,  hedged  in  and  dom- 
inated a  disappointed  people  are  to  look  for  approval  to  a  petition 
recalling  his  master.  When  the  clerk  denies  the  petition,  he  does 
not  have  to  give  his  reasons  for  his  disapproval ;  he  is  not  obliged 
to  go  into  details  and  point  out  specifically  the  defects  in  the 
petition  that  cause  him  to  reject  it,  but  he  may  practically  in 
substance  say  as  lawyers  do  in  the  trial  of  cases,  "I  object,  the 
petition  is  irrelevant,  incompetent  and  immaterial,"  look  wise  and 
possibly  insolent,  while  the  people  groan  on  until  the  next  elec- 
tion, only  to  be  met  by  the  most  powerful  machine  ever  created 
by  man. 

Again,  if  the  clerk  feels  that  it  would  be  indelicate  or  im- 
proper for  him  to  have  anything  to  do  with  the  petition,  owing 
to  the  fact  that  his  friend  and  master  on  the  council  is  to  be 
recalled ;  and  again,  if  he  has  some  compunctions  of  conscience 
about  approving  a  petition  to  recall  his  master  who  furnishes 
him  with  his  daily  bread,  he  may  pass  the  petition  on  to  the 
council  itself  and  let  the  council  decide  whether  it  is  best  to 
have  the  member  or  members  of  the  council  recalled,  for  the 
council  can  itself  exercise  each  and  all  of  the  duties  performed 
by  the  clerk;  and,  again,  if  a  single  member  of  the  council  is  to 
be  recalled,  he  has  the  right  under  this  bill,  supposing  he  should 
get  a  little  nervous  about  what  the  clerk  might  do,  and  at  some 
time  while  the  clerk  is  hesitating  between  doubt  and  duty,  to 
add  his  certificate  disapproving  of  the  petition ;  for  the  bill  ex- 
pressly provides  in  section  7  that  the  council  shall  have  and  shall 
exercise  all  the  powers  and  duties  now  exercised  by  the  various 
executive  and  administrative  officers  of  the  cities  of  the  first 
class.  This,  of  course,  includes  the  city  clerk.  Not  only  does  it 
say  that  the  council  may  do  this,  meaning,  of  course,  the  council 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  115 

as  a  body,  but  it  very  clearly  distinguishes  the  council  from  the 
members  of  the  council  and  gives  the  members  the  right  and 
privilege  to  perform  the  duties  of  the  city  clerk.  It  thus  appears 
that  a  councilman  may  reject  a  petition  for  his  ow^n  recall.  Of 
course,  all  those  whose  interests  seem  to  them  to  oblige  them 
to  favor  the  Des  Moines  plan  will  scoff  at  the  idea  that  a  member 
of  the  city  council  can  reject  the  petition  for  his  own  removal 
from  ofifice ;  and  yet  those  who  are  more  fortunate  in  being  free 
from  personal  bias,  if  they  will  read  section  7  of  the  bill,  will 
discover  that  a  member  of  the  council  may  perform  any  of  the 
duties  of  the  city  clerk. 

How  much  better  it  would  have  been  had  the  clerk,  who, 
under  the  Des  Moines  plan,  has  to  pass  on  the  petition  for  the 
recall  of  his  master — one  of  the  councilmen — had  the  clerk  been 
elected  by  the  people  instead  of  the  council,  and  therefore  re- 
sponsible to  the  people  instead  of  the  one  they  are  trying  to 
recall. 

Not  only  does  the  petition  for  a  recall  have  to  meet  the 
natural  bias  and  prejudice  of  a  clerk  whose  master  is  being 
removed  from  office ;  but  even  the  gathering  of  names  to  the 
petition  will  be  attended  with  difficulty  because  the  petition  very 
unnecessarily  is  required  to  be  a  sort  of  an  exposure  of  an 
influential  citizen.  The  petition,  by  this  law,  must  set  out  in 
general  terms  the  grievance  against  the  official  sought  to  be 
recalled.  There  is  absolutely  no  need  of  putting  these  things 
into  the  petition,  but  for  some  reason  or  other  this  requirement 
is  made.  Men  may  desire  to  have  the  official  recalled ;  and  yet 
dislike  very  much  to  sign  a  petition  for  general  circulation  con- 
taining ugly  charges  against  a  public  official. 

Why  should  the  privacy  of  political  opinion  be  invaded  in 
this  way?  There  is  no  imaginable  necessity  for  it.  The  law  has 
hitherto  protected  the  ballot  and  has  so  arranged  that  men  do 
not  have  to  disclose  their  views  as  to  men  or  measures.  The 
state  has  no  right,  even  in  the  slightest  degree,  to  require  a  man 
to  state  his  reasons  for  exercising  a  political  right  as  a  condition 
precedent  to  the  exercise  of  such  right.  In  the  interest  of  brevity, 
rather  than  smoothness,  it  might  not  be  improper  to  say  it  is 
none  of  the  state's  business  what  a  petitioner  thinks  about  an 


ii6  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

official.  To  sign  a  petition  for  a  recall  was  entirely  sufficient 
without  a  general  elaboration  of  the  faults  and  failings  of  the 
official. 

The  petition  is  difficult  to  secure,  its  rejection  is  easy,  and 
thus  robbed  of  its  legal  vigor,  it  becomes  a  snare  and  a  delusion. 

A  straw  man  with  a  wooden  gun  to  protect  treasure  may  look 
all  right  at  a  distance,  but  close  inspection  or  the  call  of  a  burglar 
will  expose  the  sham.  In  the  day  when  the  franchise  grabber 
knocks  at  the  door  of  the  council,  or  when  there  is  a  weak  or 
corrupt  councilman  in  power,  you  will  discover  the  fraud  and 
fraility  of  the  protection  afforded  by  this  so-called  recall.  It  is 
merely  a  straw  man  with  a  wooden  gun. 

A  careful  reading  of  this  new  law  discloses  the  fact  that  the 
initiative  and  referendum  provided  for  in  this  bill  are  in  practi- 
cally the  same  condition  as  the  recall  heretofore  described  in  so 
far  as  the  legal  details  are  concerned  whereby  they  are  handled 
and  employed,  as  well  as  in  the  matter  of  "pull  conditions"  which 
vitiate.  These  legal  agencies  are  rendered  utterly  worthless  by 
the  artful   machinery   in   which  they  are   involved. 

If  it  is  desired  to  use  the  initiative,  the  ordinance  to  be  enact- 
ed must  first  l)e  brought  before  the  council,  and  if  the  council 
refuses  to  pass  the  ordinance,  then  it  comes  in  by  petition,  and 
the  clerk,  who  is  the  servant  of  the  council  and  the  one  who 
derives  his  right  to  his  salary  from  the  council,  must  pass  on 
the  petition  as  to  whether  it  is  sufficient  to  submit  the  ordinance 
to  a  vote  of  the  people  to  overturn  the  vote  of  his  masters. 
Only  slight  knowledge  of  human  nature  will  teach  the  weakness 
of  such  a  system. 

In  the  matter  of  public  franchises,  the  bill  is  especially  de- 
fective in  that  it  changes  the  law  so  as  to  make  it  unnecessary 
to  submit  renewals  and  extensions  of  public  franchises  to  the 
vote  of  the  people.  The  bill  in  section  12  uses  these  words,  "No 
franchise  or  right  to  occupy  or  use  the  streets,  highways,  bridges 
or  public  places  in  any  city  shall  be  granted,  renewed  or  extended 
except  by  ordinance,  and  every  franchise  or  grant  for  interurban 
or  street  railway,  gas  or  waterworks,  electric  light  or  power 
plants,  telegraph  or  telephone  system,  or  other  public  service 
utilities  within  said  city,  must  be  authorized  or  approved  by  a 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  117 

majority  of  the  electors  voting  thereon  at  a  general  or  special 
election  as  provided  in  776  of  the  Code." 

Any  one  reading  the  above  carefully  will  discover  that  public 
franchises  can  be  renewed  or  extended  simply  by  ordinance  and 
without  reference  to  a  vote  of  the  people.  This  is  a  very  im- 
portant matter.  If  my  memory  serves  me  correctly,  the  exclusive 
franchise  of  the  water  company  expires  May  i,  191 1,  and  will 
have  to  be  renewed  or  disposed  of  in  some  way ;  and  yet  by  the 
terms  of  this  bill,  all  of  this  business  of  great  value  to  the  city 
can  be  disposed  of  simply  by  an  ordinance  passed  by  the  council. 
The  principal  franchises  have  already  been  granted  in  Des  Moines. 
The  water,  street  railway,  telephone  and  various  other  franchises 
have  already  been  granted.  The  main  thing  of  importance  to 
the  city  is  the  renewal  or  extension  of  these  franchises.  By  this 
so-called  Des  Moines  plan  the  renewal  or  extension  of  all  fran- 
chises may  take  place  simply  by  an  ordinance  passed  by  the  city 
council.  The  present  law  differs  very  widely  from  section  12  of 
the  law  as  found  in  the  Des  Moines  plan.  The  present  law  as 
found  in  section  776  of  the  Code  of  1897  and  which  dififers  very 
materially  and  vitally  from  the  Des  Moines  plan,  guards  with 
great  care  the  public  franchises  of  our  cities.  At  no  place  can 
the  city  council  touch  the  garment  hem  of  a  municipal  franchise, 
either  to  renew,  grant  or  extend.  The  history  of  city  councils 
handling  public  franchises  and  dealing  with  corporations  in  re- 
gard thereto  was  too  well  known  to  the  authors  of  section  776 
of  the  Code  for  them  to  allow  a  city  council  to  grant  a  renewal, 
extension  or  a  franchise  to  a  corporation.  Under  that  section 
all  of  this  business  is  done  with  the  people  and  the  people  alone. 
Read  section  776  of  the  Code  and  also  section  12  of  the  Des 
Moines  plan  and  compare  them  line  by  line,  and  then  you  will 
know  and  understand  that  some  one  deeply  interested  in  munic- 
ipal franchises  as  a  business  venture  is  back  of  this  so-called 
Des  Moines  plan.  In  such  a  comparison,  you  will  find  some  ex- 
planation for  the  oft-repeated  statement  that  things  cannot  be 
any  worse  than  they  are  now,  and  you  will  discover  in  what 
way  things  may  be  made  better  for  those  who  desire  to  secure 
unearned   public   franchises. 

Another  marvelous  feature  of  this  piece  of  legal  mechanism 


ii8  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

is  found  in  the  fact  that  the  bill  provides  in  substance  as  shown 
by  section  7  that  the  council  shall  have,  possess  and  exercise  all 
the  duties  of  the  assessor,  treasurer  and  auditor.  The  section  also 
gives  power  and  authority  of  various  other  official  functions; 
but  especially  is  the  power  given  individually  and  collectively  ta 
the  council  of  these  three  public  offices,  a  most  peculiar  and  inter- 
esting feature.  The  law  especially  provides  in  section  1182  of 
the  Code  that  bond  shall  not  be  required  of  a  member  of  the 
city  council.  The  Des  Moines  plan  makes  no  provision  for 
councilmen  putting  up  bonds  and  yet  each  member  of  the  city 
council  is  given  all  the  power  and  authority  and  is  required  to 
exercise  it  that  is  had  and  possessed  by  the  city  treasurer.  The 
press  of  the  city  deny  this  so  vigorously  that  each  citizen  should 
get  a  copy  of  the  bill  and  read  very  carefully  section  7,  and  when 
this  is  done,  it  will  render  futile  all  such  denials.  It  is  easy  to 
understand  how  it  might  be  gratifying  to  ambitious  financiers  of 
the  frenzied  class  to  be  assessor,  treasurer  and  auditor  all  in  a 
bunch  without  bond,  while  backed  up  by  a  powerful  political 
machine,  composed  of  their  servants  and  employees  in  the  serv- 
ice of  the  city,  but  it  is  difficult  to  understand  how  bankers^ 
tradesmen,  professional  people,  mechanics  and  laborers  can  con- 
template such  a  situation  except  with  a  feeling  of  dismay.  One 
of  the  peculiar  features  disclosed  by  careful  study  of  this  bill 
and  which  will  not  ordinarily  appear  at  a  casual  reading,  is  that 
public  officials  outside  of  the  city  council  are  not  officials  in  the 
ordinary  sense  of  the  term,  but  that  they  are  agents,  not  of 
the  council  alone,  but  each  and  all  are  agents  of  each  individual 
member  of  the  council,  and  that  hence,  of  course,  what  any  one 
of  these  agents  may  do,  the  principal  or  councilman  may  do. 
This  gives  rise  to  a  somewhat  complicated  legal  situation,  that 
however  well  known  it  may  be  in  the  remote  parts  of  the  south- 
ern states,  is  practically  unknown  in  the  state  of  Iowa ;  and  I 
imagine  it  will  begin  to  attract  very  universal  attention,  especially 
of  business  and  professional  people,  when  knowledge  of  the  law 
is  fully  disseminated. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  ancient  soothsayers  smiled  in  a 
very  peculiar  way  when  they  met  by  themselves ;  and  one 
would  think  that  the  gentlemen  or  gentleman  who  brought  this 


MUxXICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  119 

unique  system  of  government  up  from  the  sunny  south  as  an 
especial  antidote  for  fraud  and  corruption  in  city  government, 
must  certainly  smile  when  in  seclusion  from  public  view  among 
those  who  support  this  measure. 

This  bill  certainly  is  a  wonder.  One  discovers  something  new 
at  every  reading.  It  is  very  comprehensive,  practically  everything 
in  this  world  being  included  that  men  need  to  be  concerned  about 
in  this  life  exc^ept  possibly  perpetual  motion ;  and,  it  is  barely 
possible  that  the  estimable  gentleman  who  framed  the  measure 
left  out  perpetual  motion  because  it  was  thought  that  perpetual 
ofifice  holding  would  supply  the  omission. 

In  conclusion  let  the  suggestion  be  made  that  no  man  vote  for 
this  bill  till  he  has  read  it.  It  needs  careful,  very  careful  reading. 
No  prudent  man  will  sign  a  contract  until  he  has  read  it ;  and 
also  a  man  of  prudence  and  business  sagacity  will  be  very  sure 
that  he  understands  the  contract  after  he  has  read  it,  and  now  in 
this  matter,  not  only  read  the  measure,  but  be  sure  that  it  is 
tuiderstood  before  it  is  voted  on. 

Defects  of  the  Des  Moines  Plan.     Charles  O,  Holly. 

Partially  to  summarize  the  defects  of  this  law  : 

1.  The  old  law  prohibits  secret  sessions  of  the  council,  and 
the  new  law  allows  all  sessions  of  the  council  to  be  secret. 

2.  The  law  dealing  with  franchises,  if  it  does  not  leave  the 
renewals  and  extensions  entirely  to  the  city  council,  at  least 
leaves  the  question  in  doubt. 

3.  Section  8  of  the  law  gives  each  member  of  the  city  coun- 
cil all  power  and  authority  over  each  and  every  official  in  the  city, 
and  it  also  gives  this  power  to  the  council  jointly  as  among  its 
members.    This  has  a  tendency  to  create  confusion. 

4.  In  some  places  the  law  reduces  the  criminal  penalties  for 
violation  of  the  election  laws.  These  penalties  were  not  very 
severe  originally,  and  they  should  have  been  made  more  severe. 

5.  The  law,  as  it  originally  was,  obliges  certain  public  offi- 
cials to  give  bonds :  and  under  the  new  law,  no  bonds  are  re- 
quired of  any  public  official. 

6.  The  law  leaves  the  "initiative  and  referendum"  and  the 


120  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

"recall"  almost  entirely  within  the  power  of  the  city  council. 
This  can  be  determined  by  consulting  carefully  Section  18  of  the 
new  law. 

7.  There  is  no  provision  in  the  law  for  putting  a  candidate 
on  the  ticket  as  against  one  to  be  recalled. 

8.  Also  there  is  no  provision  in  the  law  for  any  registration 
whatever  prior  to  the  vote  and  for  use  in  voting  at  the  primary 
nominating  candidates. 

9.  There  is  no  provision  at  all  in  the  law  to  protect  candi- 
dates in  the  selection  of  judges  of  election.  The  only  officials 
we  elect  under  the  new  law  are  five,  four  councilmen  and  a  mayor. 
If  the  councilmen  and  mayor  desire  an  election,  and  in  my  city 
they  always  do,  under  this  law,  they  are  allowed  to  organize 
the  entire  election  board,  and  to  put  any  one  on  these  boards  that 
they  see  fit  in  each  voting  precinct.  This  may  not  be  exactly 
true  as  I  have  stated  it,  but  it  is  true  to  all  practical  purposes, 
as  will  be  seen  on  consulting  the  law.  If  the  law  were  absolute- 
ly perfect  in  every  other  respect,  this  one  defect  ought  to  con- 
demn  it. 

City  not  a  Business  Corporation.     Vincent  Starzinger. 

Advocates  of  the  commission  plan  attempt  to  draw  an  analo- 
gy between  the  city  and  a  business  corporation.  But  there  is 
a  vast  difference  between  the  two.  The  prime  object  of  the 
latter  is  private  gain,  and  its  efficiency  is  usually  dependent  upon 
the  spur  of  personal  interest.  On  the  other  hand,  the  city,  even 
though  it  may  be  subordinate  to  the  state,  presents  a  problem 
of  government  in  which  the  huvian  element,  such  as  the  every- 
day well-being,  schooling,  hygiene,  and  the  general  happiness 
of  a  vast  community  of  men,  women,  and  children,  is  ever 
present.  And  so  the  courts  have  held  again  and  again  that  the 
city  is  primarily  governmental.  In  the  words  of  Judge  Dillon, 
"a  municipal  corporation  is  essentially  public  and  political  in 
character." 

But  even  a  greedy  private  corporation  has  a  separate  body, 
its  board  uf  directo'-s,  to  legislate,  to  determine  policies,  to  criti- 
cize the  executive,   and  to   safeguard  the   stockholders.     Where 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  121 

this  principle  is  not  observed,  the  result  is  usually  disastrous,^ 
and  the  only  safeguards  of  the  stockholders  become  governmen- 
tal intervention, — almost  to  the  extent  of  management. 

Commission:  Not  a  Superior  Legislative  Body. 
Vincent    Starzinger. 

The  contention  is  made  that  the  commissioners,  being  at 
the  heads  of  the  various  departments  and  knowing  thoroughly 
the  needs  of  the  city,  v^ill  furnish  superior  legislation. 

The  argument  is  ingenious  but  a  little  reflection  shows  it 
to  be  fallacious. 

Legislation,  being  the  determination  of  policy,  precedes  and 
becomes  a  foundation  for  administration,  which  is  the  carrying 
out  of  that  policy.  The  essential  thing  in  legislation  is  that 
it  reflects  the  will  of  the  people.  "Should  the  city  levy  a  bridge 
tax?"  Such  questions  as  this  should  be  decided  only  after  the 
differing  interests  and  prejudices  have  been  considered  and  crys- 
tallized. 

Now  the  ability  to  administrate  usually  precludes  the  abili- 
ty to  legislate  and  vice  versa.  To  illustrate,  an  efficient  legis- 
lator must  be  a  representative  of  the  people,  responsive  to  their 
will.  On  the  other  hand,  the  prerequisites  for  efficient  adminis- 
tration are  stability  and  coiitinuality  and  technical  skill  and  knowl- 
edge. When  we  place  the  performance  of  both  functions  in 
the  hands  of  one  man,  we  sacrifice  one  or  the  other,  usually  both. 
It  is  especially  unsafe  to  entrust  legislation  to  administra- 
tors. They  very  naturally  exalt  and  magnify  their  depart- 
ments. Says  F.  R.  Clow,  one  of  the  foremost  authorities  on 
city  finance,  "The  estimates  of  the  department  chiefs  invariably 
call  for  expenditures  beyond  the  city's  means  of  payment." 
Worst  of  all  each  commissioner,  knowing  little  of  the  other 
departments,  will  naturally  take  the  word  of  its  administrative 
head,  especially  since  he  desires  the  same  freedom. 

And  finally,  while  it  cannot  be  said  that  knowledge  of  ad- 
ministration is  of  no  benefit  in  legislation,  yet  the  necessary 
information    can    be    secured    without       completely    fusing    both 


122  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

functions  in  one  small  body.  In  the  European  cities,  this  is 
done  b}^  making  the  administrative  officials  responsible  to  the 
council.  In  a  number  of  American  cities,  it  is  done  by  having 
the  cabinet  meet  to  cooperate  with  the  legislative  body.  There 
would  be  nothing  to  be  gained  by  withholding  the  information 
and  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  city's  government  has  full  benefit 
of  the  training  and  skill  of  the  executive  officials  without  con- 
fusing legislation  and  administration  in  a  small  executive  cabi- 
net. 

Superior  Legislation.     Vincent  Starzinger. 

Now  let  us  get  our  bearings  once  for  all  on  this  ingenious 
argument  that  the  commission  form  furnishes  superior  legisla- 
tion. The  contention  is,  of  course,  that  these  commissioners  will 
more  ably  legislate  because  they  have  an  intimate  knowledge  of 
the  city's  needs,  because  they  represent  the  whole  city,  and  have 
the  interests  of  the  whole  city  at  heart,  and  because  they  act 
with  dispatch  in  time  of  crises. 

The  fallacy  of  the  contention  rests  in  the  very  structure  of 
the  commission  form  itself.  It  is  continually  urged  by  those 
favoring  this  plan  that  the  commissioners  are  in  touch  with  the 
needs  of  their  departments.  Why  don't  they  say  that  these  com- 
missioners are  in  touch  with  all  the  needs  of  the  entire  city? 
This  is  what  the  commissioners  must  be  if  they  are  to  pass 
anything  like  superior  legislation.  Their  power  is  absolute. 
Right  here  is  where  the  mistake  is  made.  The  legislation  or 
policy  determining  for  one  department  is  done  by  the  whole 
commission.  The  individual  commissioners  are  at  most  only 
administrators.  Now,  no  man  would  for  a  moment  contend  that 
any  single  man  could  know  the  needs  of  a  city  with  2,000,000 
souls.  How  does  this  work  out?  One  of  two  things  hap- 
pens. There  is  ignorant  and  unscientific  dabbling  by  one  com- 
missioner with  the  affairs  of  another  department,  or  practically 
absolute  freedom  for  each  commissioner  to  do  what  he  pleases. 
Des  Moines  furnishes  both  kinds  of  examples.  At  one  time, 
intermeddling  became  so  pernicious  that  the  city  carpenter  re- 
signed in   dijgust,  saying  that  every  time  he  picked  up  a   saw 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  123 

under  the  instruction  of  the  street  commissioners,  Police  Commis- 
sioner Hamery  would  tell  him  to  drop  it  and  pick  up  a  hammer. 
Then  the  reaction  set  in  as  it  will  in  every  case  where  legislation 
is  intrusted  to  administrators. 

In  Galveston,  today,  for  instance,  not  one  cent  is  derived 
from  the  existence  of  valuable  franchises.  Is  this  the  superior 
legislation  of  which  friends  of  the  commission  idea  speak?  What 
do  you  and  I  care  how  much  a  commissioner  may  represent  the 
whole  city  and  how  he  has  the  interest  of  the  city  at  heart,  if 
the  form  of  government  inherently  makes  the  demonstration  of 
that  interest  even  worse  than  inferior  legislation?  Superior 
legislation  is  not  to  be  gained  through  the  attempted  election 
of  administration  experts  under  a  commission  form  of  govern- 
ment. 

Texas  Bulletin  (University  of).  June  i,  1905. 

Some    Fundamental    Political    Principles    Applied    to    Municipal 
Government. 

Whatever  may  be  said  as  to  failure  or  success,  there  is 
evidently  something  wrong.  If  there  were  municipal  evils  in  only 
a  few  places  here  and  there,  and  only  at  intervals  or  occasional- 
\y,  there  would  be  little  cause  for  concern.  But  when  we  find 
these  evils  from  Boston  to  San  Francisco,  from  Minneapolis 
to  New  Orleans,  when  we  find  them  persisting  year  after  year, 
when  we  find  them  in  country  towns  as  well  as  in  manufacturing 
and  commercial  centers,  when  we  find  them  not  in  some  one 
part,  but  in  all  parts  of  the  municipal  organization,  and  adjusting 
themselves  seemingly  to  every  turn  and  condition,  the  conclusion 
is  absolutely  forced  upon  us  that  there  is  something  wrong,  and 
radically  wrong. 

And  yet,  at  the  same  time,  there  is  among  the  people  general- 
ly the  greatest  indefiniteness  and  bewilderment  as  to  what  the  real, 
ultimate  trouble  is.  We  know  the  evils  well  enough — corruption 
and  inefficiency ;  we  know  them,  not  merely  in  a  general  way, 
but  we  know  the  details  even  unto  satiety.  We  know  the  how 
and  when  and  where,  but  as  regards  the  why  there  are  few  that 
have  traced   the   evils   beyond   individual   human   ignorance   and 


124  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

human  greed.  Few  have  traced  them  back  into  the  social  con- 
ditions and  political  organization  and  told  us  really  why. 

At  the  same  time  let  me  call  attention  to  a  remarkable  con- 
trast. In  the  national  system  of  government  we  have  a  constitu- 
tion admired  by  foreigners  and  reverenced  by  our  own  people — a 
document  declarefli  to  be  the  most  perfect  work  wrought  by  the 
minds  of  men  in  the  realm  of  politics.  So  far  as  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  government  is  concerned  the  constitution  has  stood 
unchanged  through  all  the  changes  and  vicissitudes  of  a  hundred 
and  seventeen  years,  during  which  time  the  population  has  grown 
from  four  to  eighty  millions,  the  area  has  doubled,  and  the  arts 
and  sciences  have  transformed  the  conditions  of  civilized  life 
and  activity.  Contrast  the  above  attitude  with  that  toward  our 
city  charters — our  municipal  constitution — all  over  this  country: 
dissatisfaction,  criticism,  and  amendment,  not  only  occasionally 
and  in  minor  points,  but  frequently,  and  often  of  the  most  radical 
character  as  regards  the  form  of  organization,  the  election 
of  officers,  and  the  distribution  of  powers. 

But  some  will  answer,  city  government  is  different  from  that 
of  the  state  or  nation ;  that  state  or  national  government  is  a 
matter  of  politics,  while  city  government  is  a  matter  of  business. 
But  what  is  politics?  What  is  business?  To  my  mind,  politics 
means  the  determination  of  policies  the  deciding  of  what  ought 
to  be  done  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  people.  And  business, 
is  merely  synonymous  with  money-making,  it  has  no  place  in 
American  government.  In  France  the  government  manufactures 
and  sells  tobacco  as  a  source  of  revenue,  but  that  principle  is 
foreign  to  us.  The  question  of  establishing  a  city  waterworks 
system  is  one  of  policy,  to  be  determined  according  to  the  in- 
terests of  the  people;  and  when  it  has  been  determined  in 
the  affirmative,  the  questions  arising  in  connection  with  the  es- 
tablishing and  running  of  the  system  should  be  solved  according 
to  the  same  principle — not  with  a  view  to  making  as  much  money 
as  possible,  but  to  advance  the  public  welfare. 

There  can  be  no  difference  in  the  nature  of  government  be- 
tween that  of  the  city  and  that  of  the  state  or  nation.  It  is  still 
government,  and  nothing  but  government.  Government  is  the  or- 
gan of  society  politically  organized,  and  the  characteristic  of  po- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  125 

litical  organization,  or  of  governmental  function,  is  compulsion. 
It  says  "Thou  shalt"  or  "Thou  shalt  not" ;  and  compels  obedience 
or  disobedience  by  force.  This  is  just  as  characteristic  of  muni- 
cipal as  of  state  or  national  government.  The  only  reason  for 
making  any  distinction  between  the  two  as  regards  business  char- 
acter is  that  municipal  conditions  are  such  that  municipal  govern- 
ments are  entering  more  and  more  upon  the  management  of  pub- 
lic utilities ;  utilities,  however,  that  are  all  monopolistic  in  their 
nature,  and  consequently  are  often  run,  when  owned  by  private 
corporations,  in  a  manner  less  conducive  to  the  public  welfare 
than  the  people  have  a  right  to  demand.  But  this  is  a  secondary 
element,  and  does  not  change  the  fundamental  character  of  the 
government,  and  the  strict  application  to  it  of  democratic  prin- 
ciples. 

Perhaps,  however,  some  will  say  that  the  government  remains 
democratic  so  long  as  the  people  select  the  officers.  I  insist  that 
democratic  government  means  government  by  the  people ;  it  does 
not  mean  that  the  people  elect  a  man  and  he  governs.  That  is 
a  monarchy :  monarchy  need  not  be  hereditary ;  it  may  be  elec- 
tive. The  question  is  whether  it  is  the  will  of  the  people,  or  the 
will  of  the  officer,  that  is  carried  into  effect ;  and  no  government 
is  democratic  no  matter  what  form  it  may  boast,  that  does  not 
give  effect,  necessarily  and  absolutely,  to  the  will  of  the  people. 
But  it  may  be  said,  the  commission  does  give  effect  to  the  will 
of  the  people.  This  is,  of  course,  true  to  a  considerable  degree, 
but  so  also  does  a  monarch  for  the  most  part  give  effect  to  the 
will  of  his  people ;  otherwise  they  would  rebel.  The  question 
is  not,  as  it  might  seem  to  be,  merely  a  question  of  willingness 
on  the  part  of  those  in  office  to  carry  out  the  will  of  the  people: 
granting  this,  there  remains  the  difficulty  that  officers  or  monarchs 
cannot  carry  out  that  will  unless  they  know  it,  and  only  so  far 
as  they  know  it.  It  is  often  true  in  the  case  of  a  monarch  that  he 
is  deceived  or  deceives  himself,  as  to  the  real  will  of  the  people. 
And  here  is  the  chief  objection,  from  the  standpoint  of  democ- 
racy, to  substituting  a  commission  for  a  city  council,  a  state  leg- 
islature, or  the  national  congress,  namely,  that  a  commission  can 
not  know  as  accurately  as  these  bodies  the  will  of  the  people  in 
order  to  carry  it  into  effect. 


£26  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Another  decisive  objection  to  a  commission  is  that  it  confuses, 
even  worse  than  is  done  at  present,  the  legislative  and  ex- 
ecutive functions.  In  form  a  commission  is  an  executive  body, 
small  and  compact,  organized  for  doing  things,  and  yet  there  is 
conferred  upon  it  the  whole  municipal  legislative  function,  of 
deciding  what  shall  be  done.  This  matter  of  the  separation  of 
the  executive  and  legislative  functions,  and  its  fundamental  im- 
portance, will  be  taken  up  farther  on  in  discussing  the  powers 
and  position  of  the  board  of  aldermen  and  of  the  heads  of 
executive  departments.  Here  I  wish  only  to  state  distinctly  that 
by  legislative  function  I  do  not  mean  merely  the  passing  of 
ordinances ;  I  mean  the  determination  of  policies,  the  deciding  of 
what  shall  be  done,  whether  expressed  by  ordinances,  resolution, 
or  otherwise,  to  which  is  accessory  the  exclusive  power  of  mak- 
ing appropriations. 

I  have  just  said  that  we  want  a  city  government  so  consti- 
tuted as  to  effect  two  things :  first,  give  expression  most  accur- 
ately to  the  will  of  the  people,  and  secondly,  carry  that  will  into 
effect  in  the  most  efficient  manner.  We  have  here  indicated  the 
most  fundamental  characteristic  of  the  government — the  separa- 
tion of  the  legislative  and  executive  functions — a  separation  of 
the  function  of  deciding  what  shall  be  done  from  that  of  doing  it. 


Commission  is  an  Oligarchy.    Walter  A.  Webster. 

A  commission  is  government  by  a  small  oligarchy,  even 
though  chosen  by  the  people.  It  is  a  form  of  benevolent  pater- 
nalism that  confesses  incompetency  in  representative  government. 
The  history  of  the  development  of  all  organizations,  whether 
governments,  church  hierarchies,  secret  organizations,  or  what 
not,  shows  that  when  a  few  men  are  vested  with  extraordinary 
power  their  power  becomes  centralized  and  extremely  difficult  to 
dislodge.  There  is  every  reason  for  believing  that  government 
by  commission  will  operate  very  quickly  toward  this  end.  If 
it  does  not  it  will  be  an  exception  to  a  universal  rule. 

A  commission  is  a  small  body.  It  is  almost  a  maxim  that 
the   smaller   the  body  the   easier   it   is   to    reach   and   influence. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  127 

Financial  inducements  are  not  the  only  bait  used  for  public  men. 
Ambition  and  selfishness  influence  more  men  than  money,  and 
humanity  is  still  powerfully  affected  by  party,  race,  and  religion. 
A  small  board  is  also  very  often  dominated  by  one  man  of  strong 
will,  or  by  a  small  clique,  which  is  to  be  deprecated  even  though 
they  be  business  men  or  so-called  leading  citizens.  So  too, 
small  bodies  have  a  tendency  to  perpetuate  themselves  and  it  is 
extremely  difficult  to  prevent  it. 

When  a  few  men  gather  around  a  table  continually  to  solve 
problems,  there  is  a  tendency  finally  to  get  into  a  rut  and  X  by 
custom  looks  after  one  thing,  Y  after  another  and  Z  after 
another,  and  if  things  go  apparently  right,  no  one  bothers  the 
other's  work.  This  is  never  so  in  a  popular  assembly,  where  the 
kicker  will  always  be  found.  Much  as  we  dislike  cranks  and 
men  who  ride  hobbies,  their  persistency  and  fighting  qualities 
have  time  and  time  again  been  of  the  utmost  service  to  the 
cause  of  liberty,  and  it  will  be  a  sorry  day  when  their  services 
are  dispensed  with  in  governmental  matters. 

It  may  be  argued  that  the  people  will  be  the  safety  valve  to 
prevent  abuses  in  government  by  commission.  They  of  course 
are  in  a  representative  assembly,  but  when  you  abolish  that, 
and  expect  the  people  directly  to  correct  ordinary  abuses,  it  will 
be  found  that  they  will  not  and  can  not.  They  must  have  ma- 
chinery to  carry  out  their  will,  for  the  average  citizen  knows  no 
more  about  the  financial  detail  and  intricate  ramifications  of  the 
forty  departments  of  Boston  than  he  does  about  the  administra- 
tive features  and  detail  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven  and  Hart- 
ford R.  R.  Co. 

If  there  is  one  thing  that  experience  has  demonstrated  it  is 
that  the  masses  can  not  handle  financial  matters  directly  in  a 
satisfactory  manner  on 'a  large  scale.  The  theory  of  representa- 
tive government  has  solved  this  weakness  more  than  any  one 
thing. 

President  Eliot  has  likened  government  by  commission  to  the 
New  England  town  meeting.  As  a  matter  of  fact  there  is  no 
resemblance  other  than  the  fact  that  a  small  number  of  men 
are  chosen  by  the  people  to  do  executive  work.  A  town  meet- 
ing is  one  of  the  purest  democracies  known.     Every  appropria- 


128  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

tion  and  every  dollar  borrowed  is  authorized  in  the  presence  of 
every  citizen,  who  has  a  right  to  favor  it  or  to  object  to  it.  Both 
sides  of  a  question  are  discussed  in  the  presence  of  all  the  men 
who  are  paying  the  bills.  A  single  man  sometimes  arises  and  tips 
over  a  well  laid  scheme.  Under  government  by  commission  no 
ordinary  man  could  defeat  a  measure  advocated  by  a  commission 
of  seven,  and  yet  he  might  be  entirely  right.  The  people  govern 
the  town ;  the  commission  the  city.  If  it  be  replied  that  un- 
der commission  government  appropriation  bills  should  go  be- 
fore the  people  for  approval,  then  the  answer  is,  how  are  the 
people  going  to  vote?  For  an  entire  appropriation  bill  of  thirty 
or  forty  items,  even  though  they  strenuously  oppose  two  or  three 
particular  ones ;  or  are  the  people  going  to  be  called  upon  to 
vote  for  each  one  of  a  large  number  of  items?  If  the  latter,  the 
ridiculousness  of  it  needs  no  comment. 

It  is  the  fashion  nowadays  to  distrust  the  people,  especially 
on  the  part  of  our  business  men  and  well-to-do  citizens.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  ignorance  in  municipal  matters  in  Boston  is 
decidedly  prevalent  among  our  so-called  better  classes  who  have 
taken  less  interest  in  public  affairs  than  similar  men  in  almost 
any  large  city.  If  the  fifty  leading  business  men  of  Boston  really 
meant  to  redeem  her  at  any  time  they  could  do  it.  It  is  all 
nonsense  to  say  otherwise.  Bad  government  exists  by  their 
tolerance.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  selfishness  and  a  desire  for 
political  aggrandizement  is  not  confined  to  the  masses,  whose 
pocketbooks  are  seldom  benefited  by  land  deals,  street  construc- 
tion, and  wholesale  improvements.  So  it  is  with  contracts.  If 
there  is  a  nigger-in-the-wood-pile  you  will  generally  find  him 
on  Sum.mer  or  State  Street,  and  not  in  the  tenement  house 
district.  The  holier-than-thou  doctrine  is  impressive  until  the 
mask  is  removea. 

The  running  of  a  great  city  is  something  more  than  a  busi- 
ness proposition.  The  city  is  not  a  voluntary  corporation.  "It  is 
a  compulsory  corporation  into  which  men  are  born."  You  must 
contribute  to  its  support,  whether  you  want  to  or  not.  You  do 
not  have  to  invest  your  money  in  a  private  corporation.  In  busi- 
ness, every  stockholder  has  one  thing  in  view :  dividends.  This 
is   not   so   in    a   city   where    one    locality   wants    one   thing   and 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  129 

another  one  something  different.  True  it  is  that  economy  should 
t)e  practiced  and  extravagance  minimized,  but  dollars  and  cents 
should  never  be  put  before  the  man.  The  city  is  a  political  unit. 
It  is  not  a  business  unit.  In  business  the  chief  function  is  buying 
and  selling.  You  trade  and  bargain ;  this  is  all  foreign  to  the 
fundamental  idea  of  a  city.  A  city  raises  money  chiefly  by  taxa- 
tion, and  its  principal  duty  is  to  spend  that  money  in  a  way  that 
will  promote  the  health,  well-being  and  happiness  of  the  com- 
munity. In  supplying  its  citizens  with  water,  purity,  cleanliness 
and  plenty  are  essential,  no  matter  what  the  cost  may  be,  for  the 
advantage  to  the  community  is  far  above  any  mere  money  loss 
sustained  by  reason  thereof. 

Children  must  be  educated,  even  though  a  burden  is  placed 
upon  property  properly  to  school  the  poor  man's  child.  The  effi- 
ciency of  intelligent  citizenship  as  an  economic  factor  and  the 
advantage  of  a  well-read  electorate  is  beyond  argument.  So,  too, 
our  property  must  be  protected  by  the  police  and  firemen ;  our 
streets  well  kept;  our  sewerage  disposed  of;  in  spite  of  expense. 
The  essentials  must  be  had  no  matter  what  the  cost.  In  a  busi- 
ness corporation  the  stockholders  are  not  confined  by  residence 
to  the  city  or  state  where  their  company  may  be  located.  A  stock- 
holder in  a  Boston  corporation  may  live  in  San  Francisco.  A 
voter  always  resides  where  he  votes.  One  stockholder  may  have 
one  hundred  thousand  votes  to  cast  for  directors  and  another  one 
but  ten,  whereas  every  voter  has  but  one  vote,  and  the  man 
worth  $10,000,000  has  no  more  votes  than  the  man  worth  ten 
cents. 

Directors  work  for  their  own  pocketbooks.  Government  of- 
ficials work  for  the  public  good.  No  matter  how  capable  they 
may  be  they  receive  no  financial  reward  other  than  a  regulation 
salary,  unless  they  be  dishonest. 

Business  corporations  can  speculate  with  their  funds  and  take 
almost  any  kind  of  a  risk.  Cities,  by  the  very  nature  of  their 
being,  cannot  do  this.  A  business  concern  must  keep  abreast  of 
competition,  or  fall.  Cities  have  no  competitors.  Business  selects 
its  best  men  to  run  its  enterprises.  Cities  under  any  system  must 
select  office  holders  with  some  regard  to  locality,  nationality,  re- 
ligion, labor  and  business.  This  means  a  compromise.  A  com- 
promise seldom  results  in  getting  the  best  possible  men. 


130  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

In  a  business  corporation  the  executive  head  has  no  conscien- 
tious scruples  about  discharging  men  at  will.  Mere  caprice  or 
dislike  is  often  the  reason  for  excellent  men  losing  a  position. 
A  man  over  fifty  years  of  age,  whatever  his  capabilities,  is  often 
"oslerized."  A  business  man  can  pay  his  help  starvation  wages 
and  drive  them  at  their  work.  A  city  always  pays  a  living  wage 
to  its  humblest  employees ;  the  working  day  is  eight  hours,  and 
there  is  no  slave  driving.  This  costs  more  money.  It  is  not 
"good  business"  but  it  is  what  any  public  with  red  blood  in  its 
veins  demands.  When  hard  times  come,  the  private  employee 
often  loses  his  job;  the  city  employee  seldom  does.  When  men 
and  women  get  old,  penniless,  and  without  friends;  when  the  poor 
are  sick  or  starving,  the  city  is  the  guardian  angel  that  protects 
them  all.     The  cost  may  be  large,  but  it  must  be  done. 

It  will  be  readily  seen,  therefore,  that  the  government  of  a 
city  is  much  more  difficult  to  run  from  the  standpoint  of  effi- 
ciency, than  that  of  a  business  concern ;  above  all,  when  we  re- 
flect that  many  large  private  enterprises  are  absolutely  domi- 
nated by  one  executive  head,  without  any  of  the  checks  and  bal- 
ances seen  in  governments. 

Of  course  any  city  government  is  bound  to  be  inefficient  that 
does  not  select  for  the  heads  of  its  great  administrative  depart- 
ments, men  with  technical  and  executive  ability,  who  are  kept  in 
their  positions  for  a  long  period  of  time.  The  fact  that  this  is 
not  done  in  many  of  our  large  American  cities  is  one  of  the  chief 
causes  of  their  inferior  governments. 

Government  by  Commission.     Walter  A.  Webster. 

At  the  present  time  a  theory  of  government  by  commission 
seems  to  be  the  fad.  The  reasons  urged  for  its  adoption  are 
practically  the  same  as  those  used  in  1885  in  favor  of  an  auto- 
cratic mayor.  We  have  tried  the  one-man  dictator  business  long 
enough.  Do  not  let  us  substitute  seven  dictators  for  one,  for  if 
the  board  of  aldermen  and  common  council  are  abolished  and 
all  power  is  vested  in  a  commission  of  seven,  it  is  doubtful  if 
it  will  work  any  better  than  our  present  system. 

Government  by  commission  is  a  theory.    It  remains  to  be  seen 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  131 

whether  it  will  work  well  in  practice.  The  fact  that  Galveston, 
Houston,  and  other  Texas  cities  have  tried  it  and  that  Des 
Moines  is  going  to  try  it,  is  no  argument  for  Boston  to  try  it. 
The  conditions  are  absolutely  different.  Galveston  and  Houston 
have  a  population  but  little  in  excess  of  the  largest  Boston  wards, 
while  wards  20  and  21  combined  have  as  many  people  as  Des 
Moines.  Galveston  has  tried  the  plan  only  since  1901  and  Hous- 
ton since  1905,  while  the  first  election  in  Des  Moines  does  not 
take  place  until  March  this  year.  How  can  we  tell  whether 
these  experiments  are  successful  or  not  until  they  have  been 
thoroughly  tested  ? 

When  Galveston  started  this  plan  her  city  had  been  almost 
•destroyed  by  flood.  In  a  time  of  great  calamity  her  men  were 
chosen,  when  catastrophe  had  aroused  the  citizens  into  an  ac- 
tivity that  peaceful  events  never  bring  about.  Of  course  a  fine 
type  of  men  were  chosen.  They  would  have  been  chosen  in 
Boston  or  any  other  place  under  similar  conditions,  and  the  public 
of  course  was  ripe  for  reform.  We  can  tell  better  about  Gal- 
veston fifteen  or  twenty  years  from  now,  for  every  reform  move- 
ment starts  off  with  faith  and  hope.  At  first  you  get  good  men 
and  things  move  along  smoothly;  then  the  novelty  wears  off. 
The  work  becomes  onerous,  the  great  man  is  succeeded  by  one 
not  quite  so  great,  and  he,  in  turn,  is  succeeded  by  one  a  little 
lower  in  the  scale,  and  so  on. 

In  proof  of  this  let  me  cite  the  London  County  Council,  which 
organized  with  eclat  with  Lord  Rosebery  as  chairman,  and  Sir 
John  Lubbock  as  vice  chairman,  and  some  of  the  greatest  men 
in  England  as  members.  This  was  in  1889.  Albert  Shaw 
thought  the  millenium  had  dawned  and  that  metropolitan  prob- 
lems" were  solved.  Things  have  changed  since  then,  not  but  what 
the  Council  is  a  reasonably  good  body,  but  it  has  changed  de- 
cidedly from  what  it  was.  In  fact,  it  had  to  be  reformed  in 
1907.  Increasing  burdens  meant  increased  work,  and  great  men 
of  affairs,  one  by  one,  have  slowly  retired.  This  is  the  experi- 
ence  everywhere. 

If  we  lived  in  Galveston,  many  of  us  probably  would  have 
voted  for  government  by  commission,  because  you  can  get  good 
men  in  active  business  to  serve  in  small  communities  for  they  have 


132  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

to  devote  only  a  portion  of  their  time  to  municipal  work.  In 
Boston,  the  commissioners  would  be  compelled  to  devote  all  of 
their  time.  Hence,  you  would  not  get  many  business  men 
to  serve,  but  men  who  would  be  commissioners  and  nothing  else. 

In  making  comparisons  with  Galveston,  it  should  be  remem- 
bered that  there  is  great  difference  in  supervising  the  spending 
of  $34,000,000  each  year  in  a  city  with  a  population  of  over  a  mil- 
lion, and  the  spending  of  $700,000  in  a  small  place  like  Galves- 
ton, with  forty  thousand  people.  We  had  a  good  government 
in  Boston  ourselves  when  we  were  small.  It  is  since  we  grew 
up  that  our  troubles  came. 

If  we  are  to  have  government  by  commission,  why  should 
it  be  limited  to  Boston,  alone?  Somerville,  Brookline  and  New- 
ton are  as  much  a  part  of  the  real  Boston  as  Jamaica  Plain  or 
Dorchester.  The  chief  argument  against  annexing  them  now 
is  that  their  governments  are  better  than  the  government  in  Bos- 
ton. This  is  a  serious  question  and  one  that  must  be  faced.  It 
is  doubtful,  however,  if  our  suburban  cities  would  or  should 
agree  to  it. 

If  Boston  is  to  be  run  by  an.  elective  commission  of  seven 
what  guarantee  have  we  that  the  seven  will  average  any  better 
than  the  thirteen  aldermen  sometimes  elected?  By  what  miracle 
will  the  electorate  eliminate  the  unfit?  When  public  opinion  has 
been  concentrated  upon  the  choice  of  one  man  for  mayor  can  it 
honestly  be  said  that  the  heaviest  timber  in  Boston  is  drafted? 
Under  our  one-man  despotic  rule,  in  which  the  mayor  is  all- 
powerful  over  many  departments,  can  we  say  that  our  mayors 
have  lived  up  to  the  full  requirements  of  their  great  positions? 

One  of  the  chief  arguments  in  favor  of  a  commission  is  that 
it  is  necessarily  a  small  body,  like  five,  seven,  or  nine.  Is  this 
necessarily  a  good  argument?  The  finest  municipal  government 
in  Christendom  is  probably  Berlin,  with  a  council  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty-six  men.  Breslau  has  one  hundred  and  Dresden  sev- 
enty. No  one  has  ever  questioned  the  efficiency  of  German  city 
government,  based,  as  it  is,  upon  a  council  with  a  numerous  mem- 
bership. In  Prussia  only  tax  payers  vote  in  city  affairs,  and  the 
large  tax  payers  have  a  greater  voice  than  the  smaller  ones.  Yet 
they  choose  a  large  council. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  133 

We  can  certainly  afford  to  pattern  after  municipal  govern- 
ment in  Great  Britain.  No  English  speaking  city  is  ahead  of 
Glasgow  in  civic  righteousness  and  administrative  ability,  and  yet 
she  has  a  council  of  seventy-seven.  So,  too,  Manchester  has  a 
council  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-four,  Liverpool  a  council 
of  one  hundred,  together  with  thirty-four  aldermen,  making  one 
hundred  and  thirty-four,  Birmingham  has  sixty,  and  the  London 
County  Council  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  members. 

Most  of  these  places  are  admirably  governed ;  not  theoretical- 
ly, but  in  practice.  This  being  so,  why  should  we  abandon  the 
ideas  that  have  been  worked  out  in  the  only  two  countries  where 
first-class  municipal  governments  exist  and  adopt  a  new  theory 
that  has  never  been  put  into  practice  in  any  great  modern  city? 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  governments  of  Boston  and  New  York 
are  combinations  of  a  one-man  despotism  on  the  part  of  the 
mayor  and  a  hodge-podge  commission  rule  by  bodies  that  are 
not  elected  by  the  people.  The  people  positively  do  not  govern 
the  city  of  Boston.  The  council  has  been  stripped  of  its  power 
in  almost  everything. 

Why  not  try  a  democratic  form  of  government  in  Boston  for 
a  while,  modelled  on  the  English  system ;  a  plan  that  will  get 
close  to  the  people,  that  will  vest  our  council  with  real  power, 
and  be  free  from  legislative  interference,  but  one  that  at  the 
same  time  vests  executive  responsibility  in  a  few  experts,  then,  if 
party  politics  in  municipal  affairs  were  abolished  and  our  council- 
ors elected  for  a  term  of  at  least  three  years,  I  believe  that  we 
would  get  good  government,  for  I  sincerely  think  that  the  vast 
majority  of  men  in  Boston  desire  a  decent  government.  At 
present  our  system  is  run  under  the  theory  that  the  people  can 
not  be  trusted.  I  believe  that  this  is  one  of  the  chief  causes 
of  municipal  misrule. 

Cedar   Rapids  Evening  Times.  December  8,   1908. 

Failure   of   Commission   Plan.     Clinton   L.   White. 

Plon.  Clinton  L.  White  of  Sacramento,  Calif.,  speaking  of 
the  commission  form  of  government  which  was  abandoned  there 
in  1893,  after  fifteen  years  of  trial  writes: 


134  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

The  first  commissioner  was  ex-officio  mayor  of  the  city,  the 
second  commissioner  was  ex-officio  superintendent  of  the  streets, 
and  the  third  was  ex-officio  superintendent  of  city  water  works. 
While  any  two  of  them  could  over-rule  the  third,  even  in  his 
own  department,  in  almost  every  instance  the  board  soon  came 
to  the  understanding  that  each  man  was  to  be  let  alone  in  the 
management  of  the  department  consigned  to  him.  This  resulted 
in  there  being  in  fact  no  tribunal  supervisory  power  over  the 
executive  of  a  particular  department.  The  management  of  the 
street  department,  the  small  amount  of  work  accomplished  with 
funds  provided  for  the  purpose  and  the  number  of  employes 
doing  only  a  nominal  amount  of  work,  but  drawing  full  pay 
from  the  city  were  at  times  something  simply  scandalous.  The 
management  of  the  water  works  system  was  frequently  almost  as 
bad,  and  these  things  were  not  checked  by  a  disinterested  tri- 
bunal. 

In  1903,  the  people  being  convinced  that  we  could  improve 
upon  this  system  of  government,  elected  fifteen  free-holders  to 
frame  a  charter.  When  the  free-holders  met  they  were  of  the 
unanimous  opinion  that  we  should  separate  the  legislative  from 
the  executive  department.  Accordingly,  we  framed  the  present 
charter  and  under  it  we  certainly  have  had  a  municipal  govern- 
ment very  much  superior  to  our  old  commissioners'  system. 

Many  objections  may  be  urged  against  the  commission  form 
of  city  government  because  of  the  trades  which  are  made  be- 
tween the  members  of  the  commission — "You  support  my  meas- 
ure and  I  will  support  yours" — "You  scratch  my  back  and  I  will 
scratch  yours" — "You  appoint  my  friend  as  a  member  of  the  po- 
lice force  and  I  will  vote  for  yours  as  a  member  of  the  fire  de- 
partment." 

Cedar  Rapids  Republican.  October  22,  1907. 
Commission  Plan.    J.  R.  Palda. 

To  the  Bohemian  Independent  Political  Club  of  Cedar  Rap- 
ids, Iowa : 

If  at  first  I  did  not  favor  the  plan,  I  am  now  decidedly  op- 
posed to  it.     At  the  beginning  I  was  against  the  plan  more  from 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  135 

a  theoretical  standpoint.  I  could  discern  a  deleterious  assault 
upon  our  system  of  popular  municipal  government  and  a  serious 
injury  to  all  representative  institutions  that  begin  with  the  wards 
in  the  cities  and  with  the  townships  in  the  counties. 

I  do  not  entertain  the  slightest  doubt  that  the  friends  of  this 
plan  are  sincere  in  their  belief  that  the  establishment  of  the  com- 
mission plan  would  be  for  the  public  good  and  that  they  de- 
sire only  the  betterment  of  the  people's  welfare,  and  it  would  not 
be  just  to  attribute  to  them  other  than  honest  motives.  But  they 
view  the  matter  from  a  different,  and  to  my  mind,  a  false  stand- 
point. Every  person,  even  the  friends  of  the  plan,  must  concede 
that  in  the  abolition  of  the  ward  system  and  in  the  reduction  of 
the  number  of  representatives  in  the  city  council  by  more  than 
one-half,  from  ten  to  four,  not  counting  the  mayor,  the  repre- 
sentation of  the  people  will  be  greatly  reduced  and  the  spirit  of 
American  democracy  in  the  administration  of  the  city  will  be 
seriously  curtailed.  And  this  all  the  more  so  because  to  this 
much  reduced  representation,  to  these  few  heads  and  hands, 
would  be  confined  a  mighty  power  over  the  city.  They  are  to 
employ  all  officers  and  employes  of  the  city ;  they  are  to  rule 
over  everything  that  the  city  now  possesses  or  in  future  may 
possess ;  they  are  to  control  the  order,  morals  and  progress  of  the 
city.  Everything  will  depend  upon  the  four  commissioners  and 
the  mayor.  Only  a  sober  thought  is  necessary  to  perceive  and 
comprehend  the  enormous    power  that  would  rest  in  their  hands ! 

Against  this  power  of  a  few  people,  of  the  magnitude  of 
which  the  friends  of  the  plan  must  surely  be  cognizant,  as  a 
protection  to  the  people  are  set  up  the  initiative,  the  referendum 
and  the  recall.  They  are  good  provisions,  in  fact  the  best  the  plan 
contains,  but  they  will  in  no  sense  counterbalance  the  powers 
granted  to  the  commission.  It  is  a  difficult  defense  against  the 
possible  misconduct  and  inefficiency  of  the  commission,  as  it  re- 
quires in  the  greater  number  of  cases  a  petition  signed  by  25  per 
cent  of  the  voters.  Who  will  undertake  the  work,  and  who  will 
pay  the  expenses  of  securing  such  a  petition?  That  is  worthy 
of  consideration.  Will  it  not  occur  to  all  that  the  people  will 
tolerate  many,  many  abuses  from  the  honorable  commission  be- 
fore they  will  reach  out  for  their  means  of  defense?    That  they 


136  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

will  remain  supinely  silent  for  a  long,  long  time  before  making 
use  of  the  initiative,  before  they  would  avail  themselves  of  the 
designated  means  of  protest  or  before  they  would  petition  that 
the  mayor  or  a  certain  commissioner  be  deposed  and  a  new  one 
everyone  has  his  friends,  and  there  are  many  dependent,  important 
and  business  people  who,  even  if  they  concurred  in  the  merit 
of  a  petition  of  that  character,  would,  through  timidity,  fear  of 
possible  injury  to  their  business  and  unwillingness  to  go  on 
record,  refuse  to  sign  the  petition.  They  will  not  "burn  their 
fingers"  on  account  of  one  commissioner.  A  much  greater  se- 
curity is  enjoyed  by  the  people  in  a  larger  representation  and 
less  power  in  a  council  elected  from  the  different  wards.  I  be- 
lieve in  the  work  and  management  of  a  larger  number.  I  believe 
in  a  proper  representation  of  the  people  in  every  department  of 
life,  and  also  in  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the  city, 
which  is  not  a  business  but  a  composite  duty  of  society.  A 
great  diversity  of  matters  are  presented  that  require  much 
thought  and  study  for  their  correct  solution  in  the  interests  of 
the  whole  people.  The  curtailment  of  representation  is  a  meas- 
ure fraught  with  dangers,  and  followed  to  its  ultimate  logical 
conclusion,  must  lead  us  to  autocracy.  Besides,  the  initiative,  the 
referendum,  and  the  recall,  which  are  the  most  salient  features  of 
the  new  plan,  can  very  easily  be  incorporated  into  the  present 
system,  and  it  is  not  necessary  in  order  to  secure  the  benefits 
of  those  provisions  to  force  upon  the  people  the  attendant  dan- 
gers and  burdens  of  the  commission   plan. 

So,  also,  it  is  possible  to  secure  to  the  people  under  the  pres- 
ent system  whatever  of  benefit  might  flow  out  of  the  com- 
mission plan,  such  as  the  provisions  against  pre-election  bar- 
gains, the  civil  service,  voting  of  franchises  by  the  people, 
monthly  statements  of  receipts  and  expenditures,  annual  audit- 
ing of  books,  etc.,  without  .incurring  the  dangers  of  restricted 
representation  and  lodging  dangerous  powers  in  the  commission. 

Viewed  from  the  practical  standpoint,  the  commission  plan 
will  not  secure  us  a  better  or  more  economical  government. 
There  is  nothing  on  which  to  base  the  assurance  that  better 
men  will  be  elected  into  the  commission.     Political  parties,  which 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  137 

will  be  eliminated,  will  not  work  directly  for  control  of  the  city, 
but  it  is  possible  to  secure  the  same  end  indirectly.  Besides, 
the  city  will  not  be  without  parties,  and  how  they  will  crystalize, 
-only  the  future  can  show.  It  is  highly  probable  that  the  place  of 
political  parties  will  be  taken  by  parties  of  office-seekers,  sure- 
ly more  dangerous,  and  destructive  than  political  parties.  A 
<:ontest  solely  for  spoils  may  be  waged  besides  an  exalted  desire 
and  commendable  effort  for  public  welfare.  Both  are  possible. 
An  honest  election  contest  of  public-spirited  citizens  and  also 
a  contest  of  greed  and  selfishness. 

The  commissioners  will  appoint  all  officers  and  employes, 
directly  and  indirectly.  What  large  number  of  persons  in  the 
city's  employ  dependent  in  a  great  measure  upon  the  particular 
commissioners !  Will  it  not  occur  to  everyone  that  all  these 
people,  their  relatives  and  friends  will  naturally  interest  them- 
selves in  their  re-election?  What  effect  will  it  have?  What  pos- 
sibilities !  Bureaucracy  is  possible  even  in  a  republic  when  the 
seeds  of  autocracy  are  permitted  to  take  root !  Its  prevent- 
ive lies  only  in  pure  and  unrestricted  popular  government. 

It  is  just  as  possible  that  incompetent  and  unreliable  men 
may  succeed  in  being  elected  into  the  commission  as  were  ever 
elected  into  a  city  council.  If  the  people  are  indifferent  at  the 
primaries  and  election,  as  has  often  been  the  case  at  the 
caucus  and  election,  the  result  will  be  the  same.  In  that  case 
how  much  worse  off  will  the  citizens  be  than  now,  in  view  of  the 
unrestricted  powers  of  the  commission?  The  very  thought  is 
revolting.  Even  if  they  should  be  more  competent  and  more 
-efficient,  will  a  better  administration  of  the  city's  affairs  be  the 
result  as  is  promised?  Can  one  person  serve  several  masters? 
Can  he  with  success  manage  such  institutions  as  the  water 
works,  the  parks  and  other  property  of  the  city  as  this  law  re- 
■quires?  Each  commissioner  will  have  his  department  and  the 
other  commissioners  will  only,  in  a  sense,  put  their  stamp  of 
approval  upon  his  transactions ;  whatever  he  does  or  recommends 
will  be  weighed  and  considered  as  the  best  judgment  of  a 
specialist — a  person  who  gives  special  attention  to  that  depart- 
ment, and  in  most  cases  his  recommendations  will  be  received 
without  protest,  question  or  hesitation,  as  each  commissioner  will 


138  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

be  preoccupied  with  his  own  department  and  will  not  take  time 
to  investigate  into  the  merits  of  the  recommendations.  What 
does  that  mean?  A  one-man  government.  Can  that  be  better 
than  the  present?  Let  every  one  answer  that  for  himself.  Even 
the  most  competent  will  stumble  over  the  block  of  impossibility, 
though  they  devoted  all  their  time  to  the  public.  But  they  will  not, 
and  cannot,  devote  all  their  time  to  the  city,  as  was  well  said 
and  explained  by  City  Attorn.ey  Good,  who  is  understood  to 
favor  the  plan,  in  his  Central  Park  speech  last  week.  No  one 
can  expect  or  require  that  the  commissioners  will  give  up  their 
business  or  occupation  for  the  uncertainty  of  a  two  years'  term 
of  office.  They  will  devote  as  much  time  to  the  city  as  they  will 
have  to  spare,  but  even  if  they  devoted  all  their  time,  it  will  not 
be  sufficient,  as  I  have  said,  to  meet  the  requirements  of  their 
offices.  They  will  have  to  depend  upon  their  assistants  and 
the  meaning  of  that  everyone  may  easily  guess. 

The  administration  of  the  city  under  the  commission  will 
not  be  more  economical.  Their  own  salaries  will  amount  to  a 
considerable  sum  and  the  employes  and  assistants  will  all  com- 
mand a  substantial  salary  as  their  own  contention  is  that  cheap 
help  is  worthless.  Whether  or  not  they  will  save  anything  for 
the  city  is  a  debatable  question.  If  improvements  are  made,  it 
will  cost  money,  as  no  one  will  contribute  his  labor  gratis  even 
for  the  commissioners.  The  money,  as  now,  will  have  to  be  fur- 
nished by  the  taxpayers.  Even  if  out  of  the  commissioners^ 
wisdom  some  saving  to  the  city  would  flow,  how  dearly  bought 
at  the  expense  of  subverted  popular  government,  which  the 
sagacity  of  our  ancestors  so  wisely  provided.  Let  us  not  under- 
mine the  foundations  of  American  democracy  in  a  momentary 
outburst  of  reform  derogatory  to  the  spirit  of  American  in- 
stitutions, especially  when  no  lasting  benefits  are  guaranteed, 
though  many  be  promised.  Much  improvement  is  necessary,  it  is 
true,  but  this  is  necessary  in  the  people  themselves  as  well 
as  in  the  administration  of  the  community's  affairs.  We  seek 
them  with  all  our  might,  but  our  hopes  lie  only  in  the  popular 
institutions  as  founded  by  our  forefathers,  guaranteeing  equal 
rights  and  justice  to  all.  Let  us  not  thoughtlessly  strike  at  the 
foundation  of  our  hopes  and  aspirations.     The  ward  system  is 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  139 

based  upon  a  correct  foundation,  and  needs  only  development 
to  meet  the  demands  of  modern  requirements.  Let  us  add 
to  it  whatever  of  salutary  features  the  commission  plan  con- 
tains, and  we  will  then  attain  in  fact  all  that  the  new  law  only 
promises.  Reform  must  begin  with  ourselves,  with  the  individ- 
ual, and  when  we  scrupulously  and  conscientiously  devote  our- 
selves to  the  affairs  of  our  community,  electing  good  aldermen  and 
refraining  from  adding  to  their  burdens  by  empty  and  malicious 
criticism,  esteemed  and  honest  people  will  find  it  a  pleasure  to 
seek  office  and  serve  the  public.  Only  in  this,  and  this  alone,  lies 
our  salvation, — not  in  a  new  plan,  a  plan  pregnant  with  dan- 
gers. Do  not  take  from  the  people  their  old  rights ;  rather  in- 
crease and  add  new  ones  to  them ;  but  first  of  all,  let  us  learn 
to  understand  and  to  discharge  our  sacred  obligations  to  society, 

Burlington  Evening  Gazette  (Iowa).  December  20,  1909. 

Pie  For  Politicians. 

One  of  the  brightest  women  writers  on  the  Pacific  coast  has 
an  article  in  last  Sunday's  issue  of  the  Los  Angeles  Times  (Gen- 
eral Otis'  paper),  which  the  Gazette  herewith  reprints  for  the 
edification  of  its  readers : 

One  of  the  most  vitally  interesting  questions  for  students  of 
economics  and  those  alive  to  the  urgent  needs  of  honest,  efficient 
municipal  administration,  is  that  political  vagary  known  as  a 
"commission  form  of  government."  It  is  the  pet  project  of  the 
■demagogue,  because  under  the  clever  guise  of  reform  he  is  en- 
abled to  carry  out  artfully  his  schemes  and  plans,  which  in  open 
political  warfare  would  be  branded  as  too  monstrously  dishonest 
and    partisan    to    cause    serious    apprehension. 

The  demagogue  seizes  his  opportunity  from  the  popular 
wave  of  protest  against  and  condemnation  of  certain  instances 
of  municipal  administration  under  the  present  regime — some- 
times accounted  dishonest,  more  often  simply  inefficient,  and  fans 
this  spark  of  criticism  into  a  flame  of  condemnation  and  popular 
fury.  He  subtly  tantalizes  the  dissatisfied  growl  of  that  abused, 
and  too  often  woefully  misinformed  victim,  the  American  pop- 


140  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

ulace,  into  a  howl  of  condemnation  of  all  existing  civic  insti- 
tutions. The  demagogue  smiles  complacently  at  this  stage  of  his 
game,  and  smacks  his  lips  in  anticipation  of  the  rich  morsel  of 
political  pie  he  is  preparing  for  himself,  when  the  howl  becomes 
a  roar,  and  the  populace  clamors  for  a  change  of  regime.  The 
change  is  brought  about ;  the  work  of  the  demagogue  is  com- 
plete. 

Personal  Longings 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  two-thirds  of  the  so-called  reforms  in 
municipal  administration  in  this  country  have  no  loftier  begin- 
ning than  the  personal  ambition  of  a  pettifogging  politician, 
who  is  an  astute  psychologist  and  successful  player  to  the  gal- 
lery. The  gallery  concerns  him  in  only  one  way.  Its  yells  and 
shouts  of  applause,  its  reverberating  call  for  encores,  have  arj 
erstwhile  effect  on  the  majority  of  the  public  and  create  a  vague 
impression  that  the  gallery  player  is  making  good. 

The  demagogue  is  like  the  poor,  he  is  ever  with  us.  The 
blatant  blast  of  his  tin  horn  does  not  sound  like  the  genuine  bugle 
call  to  experienced  ears,  but  the  gallery  often  mistakes  it  for 
real  music.  At  present  he  is  playing  loudly,  and  a  bit  discord- 
antly, to  the  tune  of  a  commission  plan  of  government  in  Los 
Angeles. 

Tlie  Proposition 

The  commission  plan  of  government  proposes  to: 
(i)     Eliminate  politics  from  municipal  elections. 
(2)     Give  more  efficient  service  in  municipal  administration. 
What  it  actually  does  is  to : 
(i)     Centralize  power  in  a  few  individuals. 
(2)     Place  the  appropriating  power  and  spending  money  in 
the  same  hands. 

Act  Permitting  Des  Moines  Plan 

The  following  is  a  brief  resume  of  the  act  of  the  Thirty- 
second  general  assembly  of  Iowa,  which  permitted  the  politicians 
back  of  the  commission  plan  to  submit  it  to  the  electorate  of  the 
city  of  Des  Moines  and  under  the  clever  and  subtle  guise  of 
municipal  reform  to  carry  it. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  141 

The  act  provides:  That  any  city  of  the  first  class  operating 
under  special  charter  and  having  a  population  of  25,000  may 
adopt  the  plan. 

The  mayor  shall  by  proclamation  submit  the  question  of  or- 
ganizing a  city  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  commission 
form  of  government,  to  the  electorate  of  the  city,  upon  petition 
of  25  per  cent  of  all  votes  cast  at  the  preceding  city  election  for 
all  candidates   for  mayor. 

If  the  proposition  carries,  there  shall  be  elected  a  mayor  and 
four  councilmen  or  commissioners,  who  shall  administer  munic- 
ipal affairs  by  departments,  under  the  heads  of : 

Department  of  public  affairs. 

Department  of  accounts   and  finance. 

Department   of   public   safety. 

Department  of  streets  and  public  improvements. 

Department  of  parks  and  public  property. 

The  council  (commissioners)  shall  determine  the  powers  and 
duties  to  be  performed  by,  and  assign  them  to  the  appropriate 
departments. 

Section  8  of  this  act  is  framed  so  palpably  to  meet  the  exist- 
ing and  arising  needs  of  the  politicians  behind  the  scheme  that 
it  is  printed  verbatim  : 

"The  mayor  shall  be  superintendent  of  the  department  of 
public  affairs,  and  the  council  commissioners  shall  at  the  first 
regular  meeting  after  election  of  its  members,  designate  by  ma- 
jority vote,  one  councilman  to  be  superintendent  of  the  depart- 
ment of  accounts  and  finance ;  one  to  be  superintendent  of  the 
department  of  public  safety ;  one  to  be  superintendent  of  the 
department  of  streets  and  public  improvements,  and  one  to  be 
superintendent  of  the  parks  and  public  property;  but  such  desig- 
nation shall  be  changed  whenever  it  appears  that  the  public 
service  would  be  benefited  therebj'." 

Section  9  provides  that  the  commissioners  shall  have  power 
from  time  to  time  to  create,  fill  and  discontinue  offices  and  em- 
ployments other  than  prescribed  in  the  act. 

The  salaries  of  the  commissioners  are  fixed  by  the  act,  and 
the  excuse  for  the  unusual  size  of  them  is  that  it  puts  the  officials 
beyond  the  temptation  of  robbery,  and  insures  the  administration 
of  municipal  affairs  by  experts. 


142  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

There  is  also  a  clause  providing  that  "every  other  officer,  or 
assistant,  shall  receive  such  salary  or  compensation  as  the 
council  (commissioners)  shall  by  ordinance  provide,  payable  in 
equal  monthly  installments.  The  salary  or  compensation  of  all 
other  employes  of  the  city  shall  be  fixed  by  the  council  and 
shall  be  payable  monthly  or  at  such  shorter  periods  as  the  council 
shall  determine.  That  clause  sounds  suspiciously  like  a  loophole 
for  rebates  on  salaries  and  policemen,  firemen  and  all  subor- 
dinates of  the  municipal  machinery.  The  books  of  the  admin- 
istration would  be  perfectly  correct,  when  inspected,  but  the 
graft  could  go  on  just  the  same,  even  with  the  added  incentive 
of  absolute  protection  by  this  system. 

The  entire  act  reads  as  if  made  to  order  by  the  commissioners 
themselves  for  themselves. 

What  Would  Los  Angeles  Face? 

Such  is  the  act  providing  for  the  commission  form  of  government 
instituted  in  Des  IMoines,  and  now  widely  known  as  the  "Des 
Moines  plan."  Some  such  act  would  have  to  be  passed  by  the  state 
legislature  of  California  before  the  commission  plan  of  govern- 
ment could  be  submitted  to  popular  vote.  But  assuming  that  the 
people  don't  have  to  have  it  unless  they  want  it  because  they  can 
decide  it  by  vote,  the  passing  of  the  act  is  merely  a  formality 
with  the  legislators. 

Then  the  people  of  Los  Angeles  would  be  face  to  face  with  the 
question  of  whether  or  not  they  will  give  the  entire  municipal 
authority  over  to  Lissner  and  four  of  his  chosen  colleagues,  who 
under  the  Des  Moines  plan,  according  to  an  ordinance  passed  by 
the  commissioners  of  that  city,  July  6,  1908,  may: 

(i)  Have  entire  control  of  the  executive  and  administrative 
powers,  authority  and  duties  of  the  city. 

(2)  Have  and  shall  exercise  all  legislative  powers,  functions 
and  duties  conferred  upon  the  city  or  its  officers. 

(3)  Levy  all  taxes,  apportion  and  appropriate  all  funds,  and 
audit  and  allow  all  bills,  accounts,  pay  rolls  and  claims,  and 
order  payment  thereof. 

(4)  Make  all  assessment  for  the  cost  of  street  improve- 
ments, sidewalks,  sewers  and  other  work,  improvements  or  re- 
pairs which  may  be  specially  assessed. 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  143 

(5)  Make  or  authorize  the  making  of  all  contracts,  and  no 
contract  shall  bind  or  be  obligatory  in  any  way  upon  the  city 
unless  either  made  by  ordinance  or  resolution  or  adopted  by  the 
commissioners,  or  expressly  authorized  by  ordinance  or  resolu- 
tion adopted  by  the  commissioners. 

That  is  just  exactly  what  the  Des  Moines  plan  provides  for, 
according  to  city  ordinance.  When  we  contemplate  the  appro- 
priating and  spending  power  of  any  city  in  the  hands  of  five 
political  colleagues,  we  are  certainly  not  persuaded  that  such  a 
condition  would  insure  more  honest  and  efficient  administration 
of  the  city's  business. 

Narrozi's  Educational  Work 

First  and  by  no  means  the  least  of  the  objections  to  the 
commission  form  of  government,  is  the  fact  that  it  narrows  the 
educative  work  of  local  government. 

Political  education  consists  not  only  in  the  right  to  choose, 
but  in  the  right  to  be  chosen  in  candidacy  and  in  service,  and 
under  the  present  regime,  such  education  is  afforded  to  a  large 
number  of  citizens.  The  commission  plan  of  government  re- 
duces the  number  greatly.  It  cuts  down  the  list  of  elective  offi- 
cers to  five — all  other  posts  being  filled  by  appointment  pre- 
sumably for  a  long  time.  If  the  reverse  were  the  case,  it  would 
only  bear  out  the  statements  made  by  the  students  of  political 
economy  who  oppose  the  plan  on  the  grounds  that  it  afifords 
great  opportunity  for  the  exercising  of  political  preferment  and 
personal  choice,  without  regard  to  particular  qualification  or 
the  wish  of  the  people.  This  power  of  the  commissioners  to  fill 
the  posts  by  appointment  would  prove  a  dangerous  thing  and 
lead  to  endless  dissatisfaction  and  political  intrigue,  as  well  as 
an  instability  in  municipal  government,  and  if  this  were  not  the 
case,  as  eminent  students  of  political  economy  predict,  the 
reverse  would  be  equally  unsatisfactory  and  unfair.  It  would 
permanently  place  the  work  of  the  civic  administration  in  the 
hands  of  a  very  few  men,  and  would  inevitably,  and  in  all  prob- 
ability in  a  very  short  time,  develop  as  in  the  German  cities 
into  a  professional  bureaucracy. 

The  present  multiplication  of  elective  offices  afifords  a  large 


144  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

number  of  citizens  the  opportunity  to  be  brought  in  touch  with 
political  affairs,  and  to  obtain  such  political  education  as  this 
contract  involves.  No  sound  thinking  community  can  ignore  the 
educational  effect  arising  from  the  constant  interest  in  civic 
affairs  which  can  come  only  by  actually  taking  part  in  such 
affairs. 

Will  Not  Eliminate  Politics 

The  advocates  of  the  commission  plan  of  government  for 
cities  argue  that  the  plan  will  eliminate  politics  from  municipal 
elections,  which  is  not  true,  and  if  it  were  it  is  not  a  thing  to  be 
desired  earnestly.  The  system  will  not  eliminate  politics,  but 
on  the  contrary  it  will  only  strengthen  party  organizations  and 
draw  party  lines  deeper. 

The  concentration  of  power  and  patronage  in  the  hands  of 
a  few  commissioners  will  only  make  it  all  the  more  imperative 
to  party  leaders  that  the  commission  should  be  controlled,  and 
the  party  energies,  which  are  now  spread  over  a  wide  area 
would  thus  be  concentrated  at  a  single  point.  It  is  quite  true 
that  where  the  power  of  mayor  has  been  extended,  the  result 
has  not  been  to  diminish  the  force  of  partisanship  in  mayoralty 
elections,  on  the  contrary  party  leaders  have  been  impelled  to 
make  more  energetic  campaigns  and  to  perfect  their  organiza- 
tions, at  whatever  cost,  in  order  that  they  might  control  an 
office  that  had  become  more  valuable  to  them. 

If  the  commission  form  of  government  had  succeeded  in 
eliminating  politics  from  municipal  government  as  the  commis- 
sioners of  Des  Moines  claim  has  been  done,  its  utter  failure 
would  have  occurred  before  this.  It  is  healthy  political  rivalry 
that  has  sustained  it  so  far,  or  rather  has  made  it  possible  in 
Des  ]\Ioines,  and  the  so-called  elimination  of  politics  would 
simply  mean  the  dominance  of  one  party — a  thing  which  insures 
more  than  any  other  one  factor  in  political  affairs,  bold  contor- 
tions of  the  party  in  power,  distortion  and  abuse  of  privileges, 
and  daring  corruption. 

Furthermore,  the  election  of  four  or  five  commissioners  by 
the  voters  at  large,  would  in  most  cases  result  in  selection  from 
the     ranks  of  the  dominant  party  which  could  in  nearly  every 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  145 

instance  elect  its  whole  slate  and  the  minority  party  would  in 
consequence  be  wholly  unrepresented.  On  the  other  hand  a 
large  council  the  members  of  which  are  elected  by  small  districts 
or  wards,  will  almost  certainly  contain  representatives  of  the 
weaker  party — which  of  course  operates  in  favor  of  the  prin- 
ciple of  the  preservation  of  the  balance  of  power,  so  essential 
in  all  good  government.  Even  if  the  commission  form  of  gov- 
ernment eliminated  politics,  which  the  reformers  argue  is  our 
chief  evil  in  municipal  government,  it  cannot  eliminate  corrupt 
motives,  personal  ambitions  and  selfish  interests.  By  centralizing 
authority,  and  investing  the  municipal  government  in  a  few, 
it  not  only  fails  to  eliminate  the  other  evils,  but  by  this  very 
centralization  of  authority  increases  the  capacity  for  the  opera- 
tion of  these  evils.  A  change  in  the  form  of  government  will 
avail  nothing  without  a  change  in  personnel. 

The  American  voter  lays  too  much  stress  on  the  form  of 
government  and  too  little  on  the  personnel.  In  all  European 
cities  the  efficient  administration  results,  not  at  all  from  their 
superior  frame  work,  but  from  the  caliber  of  the  men  seeking 
and  securing  municipal  offices.  And  a  corrupt  and  inefficient  set 
of  commissioners  with  wide  powers  would  be  more  capable  of 
injuring  the  best  interests  of  the  city,  than  an  equally  corrupt  and 
inefficient  set  of  administrators  under  the  present  system,  with 
their  power  decentralized.  The  very  cumbersomeness  of  the 
present  system  serves  in  a  great  degree  as  an  obstacle  in  the 
way  of  widespread,  prolonged  or  consistent  evil  doing. 

Initiative,  Referendum  and  Recall 

Of  course  there  are  in  the  Des  ]Moines  plan  the  initiative, 
referendum  and  recall,  which  at  best  seem  very  doubtful  ad- 
vantages with  two  aspects  of  disadvantage ;  the  great  difficulty 
and  expense  of  frequently  referring  matters  to  the  whole  elec- 
torate of  a  large  city;  and  second,  the  possibility  of  these  priv- 
ileges, working  in  the  hands  of  party  politicians,  and  grafters, 
more  ill  than  good. 

Every  time  a  committee  of  reckless  or  disgruntled  citizens  see 
■fit  to  invoke  these  privileges  in  the  way  of  special  elections, 
large  sums  of  money  must  be  spent  for  these  elections  that 
could  be  used  to  greater  advantage  elsewhere. 


146  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

The  very  fact  that  the  recall  allows  the  people  the  privilege 
of  displacing  municipal  officers  is  a  dangerous  weapon  in  the 
hands  of  grafting  politicians,  who  will  never  cease  to  exist, 
whatever  system  of  government  be  inaugurated.  Like  a  two- 
edged  sword,  it  can  cut  both  ways ;  the  same  power  that  operates 
in  the  hands  of  the  voter  to  displace  a  dishonest  or  incapable 
official  or  remedy  an  unsatisfactory  measure,  can  be  used  at  the 
instigation  and  through  the  machinations  of  grafters  and  schem- 
ing politicians  to  unseat  a  man  for  no  other  reason  than  that  he 
is  undesirable  for  their  purposes,  without  regard  to  his  integrity 
or  efficiency,  and  to  kill  any  ordinance  opposed  to  their  interests. 
The  same  is  true  of  the  initiative  and  referendum,  for  instance 
a  corporation  wants  a  franchise  that  it  could  not  possibly  obtain 
under  the  ruling  of  a  large  council.  It  secures  smooth  politicians 
and  canvassers,  as  well  as  able  publicity  agents  and  shrewd  pri- 
vate detectives.  With  this  working  force,  aided  by  plenty  of 
money  judiciously  spent  in  campaigning,  it  promotes  its  interests 
and  succeeds  in  getting  the  required  number  of  citizens  to  call 
a  referendum — the  corporation  canvass  is  so  able,  its  promises 
to  the  public  so  roseate,  that  the  people  vote  it  a  franchise  which 
is  a  wilful  misuse  of  the  provision  to  compass  selfish  ends,  but 
one  most  likely  to  occur  in  any  city.  Any  serious  thinker 
knows  this  is  true. 

The  initiative,  referendum  and  recall,  like  the  pendulum  of  a 
clock,  can  swing  both  ways.  The  violence  of  political  sentiment, 
and  preference  for  municipal  offices,  would  be  exactly  the  condi- 
tions, particularly  in  cities  with  a  large  and  restless  foreign 
population,  that  would  operate  against  such  institutions.  These 
sentiments  would  tend  to  upset  a  stable  government,  if  any  could 
exist  under  a  system  permitting  the  initiative,  referendum  and 
recall,  and  lead  to  a  state  of  anarchy. 

The  difficulty  and  expense  of  a  frequent  reference  to  the 
whole  electorate  of  a  large  city  like  Los  Angeles  would  be 
tremendous,  and  would  go  far  toward  nullifying  the  plan. 
It  is  quite  appalling  to  contemplate  what  the  outcome  would 
be  in  case  the  people  were  not  pleased  with  the  administration 
of  municipal  affairs  and  resorted  frequently  to  their  privilege 
of  the  initiative,  referendum  and  recall  with  each  instance  costing 
the  city  $io,ooo,  at  the  very  lowest  estimate. 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  147 

Does  Not  Insure  Expert  Service 

Advocates  of  the  commission  form  of  government  assure  us 
that  it  will  secure  the  administration  of  the  city's  affairs  by 
experts.  Not  necessarily,  any  more  than  the  present  system  of 
municipal  government  does.  There  was  a  time  in  American 
cities,  when  patronage  was  committed  to  the  municipal  council, 
and  under  this  system  party  considerations  almost  exclusively 
influenced  the  appointments  to  office.  Municipal  reformers  in- 
sisted that  this  evil  could  be  brought  to  an  end  by  transferring 
the  appointing  power  to  the  mayor.  This  has  been  in  vogue  a 
decade  or  more  and  the  evil  has  not  been  lessened.  Personal 
capabilities  have  not  counted  one  whit  more  in  appointments. 
The  fact  that  each  commissioner  under  the  Des  Moines  plan  may 
individually  appoint  his  assistants  in  minor  offices  affords  an 
undue  opportunity  for  exercising  political  preferment,  favorit- 
ism and  graft.  It  is  a  direct  reversion  to  a  system  from  which 
reformers  sought  relief  in  times  past. 

Appropriating  and  Spending  Power  in  Same  Hands 

There  is  a  grave  danger  in  the  concentration  of  the  ap- 
propriating and  spending  power  in  the  same  hands.  Of  course, 
both  these  powers  in  the  same  hands  of  a  single  small  commis- 
sion might  serve  the  interests  of  integrity,  as  long  as  good  men 
and  true  constituted  the  commission  but  in  this  fusion  of 
jurisdictions  there  is  the  gravest  kind  of  danger.  There  is  the 
eternal  possibility  and  probability — that  we  shall  not  always 
have  good  men  and  true  constituting  the  commission.  Then 
there  arises  the  danger  from  rebates  on  the  letting  of  public 
contracts,  and  countless  other  appropriations  and  expenditures, 
there  are  almost  limitless  possibilities  for  evil  operations. 

Besides  this  fusion  of  jurisdiction  involves  and  jeopardizes  a 
principle  that  has  always  characterized,  not  alone  American,  but 
the  best  European  governments.  In  German  cities  the  separa- 
tion of  the  appropriating  from  the  spending  power  is  strongly 
emphasized.  Nothing  is  more  fully  established  as  a  great  funda- 
mental principle  of  government  than  that  the  same  men  cannot 
safely  be   allowed   to  levy  taxes,   make   appropriations   and   ex- 


148  COMMISSION    PLAN   OF 

penditures.    The  Des  Moines  plan  in  this  respect,  to  say  the  least 
of  it,  lacks  logic. 

Private  and  Municipal  Corporation  Not  Alike 

Analogy  between  the  private  and  the  business  corporation 
is  not  perfect,  hence  the  same  rules  will  not  apply  to  both.  The 
commission  form  of  government  proposes  to  administer  munic- 
ipal affairs  as  the  affairs  of  a  private  corporation  are  adminis- 
tered. This  is  not  possible.  The  city  enjoys  many  local  priv- 
ileges and  immunities  which  the  ordinary  business  corporation 
does  not  possess.  It  is  not  legally  responsible  for  the  torts  of 
its  police  officers,  of  the  employes  of  its  fire  departments  or  for 
those  of  several  other  classes  of  its  agents,  whereas  the  private 
corporation  is  liable  to  lose  heavily  by  those  whom  it  takes  into 
service. 

Furthermore,  in  determining  matters  of  policj',  the  authorities 
of  a  municipality  must  give  weight  to  many  considerations  of 
social  well  being  which  the  management  of  a  private  corpora- 
tion can  afford  to  neglect  and  it  must  be  admitted,  too,  that 
administration  by  a  board  of  directors  is  not  always  synonymous 
with  integrity  and  honesty.  One  need  not  search  far  to  find 
instances  where  directors  have  proved  woefully  deficient  in  the 
knowledge  of  affairs  directly  in  their  care,  and  have  personally 
profited  at  the  expense  of  interests  they  were  chosen  to  guard. 

Because  of  the  differences  existing  between  private  and  mu- 
nicipal corporations,  the  directors  of  the  one  and  the  admin- 
istrators of  the  other  have  little  relation  to  each  other  and  the 
same  rules  and  methods  of  government  cannot  possibly  apply  to 
both. 

Incentive  to  State  Interference 

In  every  city  there  come  up,  year  by  year,  important  questions 
which  demand  broad  legislative  action  and  state  legislatures 
have  been  extremely  loath  to  trust  broad  legislative  functions  to 
small  boards  whose  duties  are  mainly  administrative.  The  com- 
mission form  of  government  encourages  state  intervention  in 
municipal  affairs. 

If  large  legislative  councils  are  eliminated   from  the   frame- 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMExMT  149 

work  of  city  government,  the  state  legislature  would  lose  no 
opportunity  to  assure  for  itself  some  of  the  broader  legislative 
functions  which  the  council  has  been  accustomed  to  exercise. 

We  know  from  experience  that  where  the  powers  of  munic- 
ipal councils  have  been  curtailed,  their  former  powers  have 
usually  been  assumd  by  state  legislatures,  and  have  not  been 
transferred  to  some  other  local  branch  of  government.  Thus 
we  see  in  a  commission  form  of  government  a  tendency  to 
encourage  state  interference,  which  is  destructive  to  the  prin- 
ciple of  civic  autonomy  and  a  menace  to  public  welfare. 

Easy  for  Corporations 

A  corporation  would  have  hard  work  to  purchase  the  entire 
vote  of  a  city  council.  To  purchase  the  vote  of  five  men  is  a 
much  simpler  matter.  It  is  to  the  interests  of  great  corporations 
seeking  undue  advantages  of  franchise,  and  other  discriminations 
in  their  favor,  to  advocate  substantially  the  commission  plan  of 
municipal  administration.  It  is  their  most  direct  route  to  secur- 
ing unwarranted  favors  impossible  of  obtainment  under  the  pres- 
ent regime. 

The  power  of  the  mayor  under  the  commission  plan  is  great, 
and  with  four  colleagues  at  the  head  of  the  city  departments, 
working  in  harmony  with  him,  the  efifect  on  public  finances  could 
easily  be  disastrous,  and  sources  of  public  revenue  such  as 
licenses  and  taxes  be  manipulated  almost  as  the  mayor  and  four 
commissioners  pleased. 

The  corporations  are  not  slow  to  see  the  vast  opportunities 
presented  to  them  for  extension  and  acquiring  rights  and  priv- 
ileges not  due  them,  by  being  able  to  manipulate  a  city  admin- 
istration. Under  the  present  regime,  the  possibility  of  any  cor- 
poration manipulating  an  entire  city  council  and  the  mayor  with 
it,  is  very  remote,  if  it  exists  at  all ;  under  the  commission  plan, 
nothing  would  be  easier  than  for  the  corporations  to  select  their 
five  men,  elect  them  and  proceed  to  dictate  to  their  manikins 
just  what  they  wanted  done. 


ISO  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Un-American 

The  Des  Moines  plan  involves  a  radical  departure  from 
American  traditions  of  local  self-government,  and  is  a  long  step 
in  the  direction  of  municipal  dictatorship  and  despotism.  The 
system  of  government  by  a  small  body  of  men  tends  to  remove 
central  power  away  from  the  people.  No  matter  what  the  safe- 
guards in  the  form  of  initiative,  referendum  and  recall  are,  the 
tendency  is  the  same.  It  is  wrong  in  principle  and  it  is  danger- 
ous. The  idea  that  the  centralization  of  power  lessens  the 
chances  for  corruption  is  erroneous.  It  is  much  easier  for  four 
or  five  men  to  agree  on  a  plan  of  dishonest  operation  than  for 
fifteen  or  twenty  to  agree  on  a  similar  plan. 

The  fact  that  the  city's  books  are  open  to  inspectors  does  not 
alter  the  aspect  of  the  case  greatly.  The  books  of  several  scan- 
dalous and  infamous  stock  companies  have  been  open  to  inspec- 
tion, but  the  stealing  went  on  just  the  same. 

De  Tocqueville  once  remarked  that  the  local  government  is 
to  the  national  government  what  the  elementary  school  is  to  the 
university ;  that  each  in  its  respective  sphere  performs  the  work 
of  preparation.  We  certainly  would  not  like  to  see  our  national 
government  vested  in  a  commission  of  five  men.  We  know  in 
that  case  we  would  eventually  be  living  under  a  dictatorship 
worse  in  many  respects  than  a  monarchy,  since  it  would  not  have 
the  innate  loyalty  to  tradition  to  make  it  tolerable.  If  a  thing  is 
wrong  in  principle,  it  won't  work  out  right  in  practice. 

Of  course  Galveston  has  succeeded  in  a  commission  form  of 
government,  but  her  case  is  an  extraordinary  one.  It  was  adopt- 
ed when  the  city  was  in  the  midst  of  debt,  desolation  and  des- 
pair, consequent  upon  the  inundation  of  1900.  A  receivership 
may  be  the  means  of  getting  a  bankrupt  corporation  on  its  feet, 
but  it  does  not  follow  that  all  sound  and  solvent  business  con- 
cerns should  adopt  this  method  of  administrating  their  affairs. 

No  one  has  a  right  to  say  the  Des  Moines  plan  is  a  success. 
The  report  of  the  city  for  the  year  1908,  in  which  it  has  had  its 
affairs  administered  by  a  commission,  is  admitted  by  the  com- 
missioners themselves  to  be  incomplete.  In  many  instances  the 
figures  showing  the  records  of  social  evils,  arrests,  etc.,  are 
noticeably  larger  than  under  the  old  regime. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  151 

It  is  a  noteworthy  fact  tliat  while  under  the  old  regime  in 

1907  there  were  421  arrests  for  keeping  disreputable  houses,  in 

1908  there  were  only  67.  With  a  corresponding  increase  in  many 
other  instances  of  evil,  and  very  little  decrease  these  figures  are 
a  bit  puzzling.  The  number  of  arrests  for  being  found  in  dis- 
orderly rooms  in  1907  was  1170,  while  in  1908  under  the  com- 
mission government  was  595,  or  a  little  more  than  half — while 
the  number  of  arrests  for  intoxication,  forgery,  larceny,  robbery, 
selling  intoxicants  and  obtaining  money  under  false  pretenses, 
with  other  criminal  offenses,  was  larger  than  in  1907.  One  has 
only  to  examine  a  copy  of  the  report  to  verify  this  statement. 

The  commission  form  of  government  has  succeeded  in  the 
District  of  Columbia,  only  because  of  certain  conditions  arising 
from  the  co-operation  of  local  and  federal  authorities  which 
could  not,  of  course,  possibly  exist  elsewhere. 

Greatest  Danger 

The  greatest  danger  in  a  commission  form  of  government 
does  not  lie  in  the  fact  that  it  works  out  poorly.  In  most  cases 
persumably  it  will  work  out  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the 
commissioners ;  but  this  plan  of  municipal  administration  will 
surely  lead  to  an  abuse  of  power,  a  gradual  usurpation  of  the 
liberties  of  citizenship  by  those  in  authority  on  the  one  hand  or 
a  state  of  limitless  political  unrest  caused  by  the  possibility  of 
constant  recourse  to  the  initiative,  referendum  and  recall  on  the 
other. 

In  great  cities  like  New  York  and  Chicago,  with  a  large 
foreign  population,  the  latter  condition  might  easily  result  in  the 
absolute  instability  of  the  government,  and  anarchy.  The  same 
is  true  to  a  large  extent  in  Los  Angeles. 


City  Hall  (Des  Moines).  10:  258-61.  January,  1909. 

Municipal  Government  by  Commission. 

Mr.  Grosser:  There  are  many  points  of  view,  of  course, 
from  which  a  thing  of  this  kind  may  be  looked  upon.  Mr. 
Huston   seems   to  be   especially  proud   of  the  primary   election. 


152  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

Let  me  inform  Mr.  Huston  that  Chicago  has  a  primary  eIectior^ 
law,  and  that  while  conditions  in  some  wards  under  this  primary 
law  may  produce  a  Hinky  Dink  or  a  Bath  House  John,  let  me  say 
to  you  they  are  not  the  most  corrupt  men  in  their  wards,  and  un- 
der the  conditions  Chicago,  I  believe,  produced  the  best  aldermen 
that  you  can  find  in  this  country.  You  may  look  upon  the  history 
of  Chicago  during  the  past  twelve  years  and  no  one  can  point  a 
finger  upon  a  single  scandal  in  our  city  council.  There  is  a 
great  difference  where  you  have  that  law,  and  there  is  a  great 
difference  between  Cedar  Rapids  and  a  city  into  which  Cedar 
Rapids  could  be  put  one  hundred  times.  The  commission  plan 
of  government  has  been  tried  heretofore,  and  while  it  is  in  a  cer- 
tain way  a  good  idea,  I  for  one  am  ready  and  willing  to  say  it 
does  not  amount  to  very  much.  The  commission  plan  is  un- 
American,  and  I  am  to  tell  you  why  I  consider  it  so.  Under 
the  commission  plan  there  is  placed  into  the  hands  of  five  men 
executive  power,  legislative  power  and  a  certain  judicial  power, 
and  I  claim  that  any  form  of  government  that  places  the  three 
cardinal  powers  into  the  hands  of  one  set  of  men  is  un-American. 
I  think  that  the  legislative  power  should  be  strictly  separated  from 
the  executive  power.  The  commissioners  pass  the  necessary 
legislation,  they  execute  the  laws,  and,  if  I  am  not  very  much 
mistaken,  they  appoint  the  police  judge,  and  thereby  have  a  finger 
on  the  judiciary  department.  From  that  point  of  view  I  believe 
the  commission  plan  is  un-American.  I  rather  like  the  federal 
plan,  elect  one  executive  officer  and  let  him  be  held  responsible 
to  the  people. 

Mr.  Gemunder,  Columbus:  When  this  subject  was  announced 
I  came  here  particularly  to  hear  it,  and  I  am  only  sorry  that  there 
was  only  one  of  the  papers  read.  The  initiative  and  referendum, 
the  civil  service  and  the  direct  primary  law  are  not  peculiar  to 
the  commission  plan.  I  think  the  discussion  of  these  points  is 
hardly  germane  to  the  main  point,  which  is  the  difference  be- 
tween the  commission  and  the  ordinary  form  of  government 
as  followed  by  the  various  cities.  From  the  information  I  can  get 
the  commission  plan  as  Cedar  Rapids  has  it  amounts  simply  to 
four  councilmen  elected  at  large  and  a  mayor  elected  at  large,  and 
each  councilman  becomes  a  committee  of  one  to  look  after  his 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  153 

department.  Now,  of  course,  as  to  whether  this  is  good  or  bad 
will  depend.  You  can  say  a  great  deal  in  favor  of  a  czar  pro- 
vided he  has  great  strength  of  character.  It  is  so  when  you 
place  more  responsibility  in  the  hands  of  a  few  people.  I  say 
the  system  has  not  been  tried  sufficiently  to  warrant  any  definite 
conclusion  as  to  its  merits.  If  you  will  look  up  the  history  of 
commissions  you  will  find  that  the  first  commission  is  a  good 
one.  In  1876  the  state  of  Ohio  appointed  a  Gas  Commission. 
As  is  customary,  the  first  appointments  were  good  ones,  but 
it  was  only  a  question  of  time  when  it  turned  right  back  into 
the  machine,  and  in  ten  years  it  was  abolished  as  a  failure.  Fur- 
thermore, the  cities  of  Galveston,  Des  Moines  and  Cedar  Rapids 
are  cities  very  small  compared  with  some  others,  and  what  is 
known  as  the  professional  political  machine  does  not  show  itself 
with  any  great  strength  in  cities  of  that  size,  but  if  you  take 
the  cities  of  Chicago,  New  York,  Philadelphia,  and  other  large 
cities,  there  is  a  powerful  machine  always  at  work,  and  how 
long  do  you  suppose  it  will  take  that  machine  to  get  control 
of  your  commission?  If  this  commission  is  composed  of  men 
of  high  character  the  commission  will  undoubtedly  do  good 
work.  The  difference  between  the  ordinary  private  corporation 
and  the  municipal  corporation  is  that  in  private  corporations 
the  stockholders  and  directors  are  spending  their  own  money. 
The  question  is  whether  if  you  center  all  your  power  in  the 
hands  of  five  men  are  the  checks  sufficient.  I  say,  gentlemen, 
that  the  trial  has  not  gone  far  enough,  and  it  will  pay  us  to 
keep  our  eyes  on  this  experiment.  I  think  it  will  prove  a  failure. 
Mr.  Oliver,  Toronto :  In  the  country  I  come  from  any  man 
can  run  for  any  office  without  having  to  ask  for  permission  from 
any  one.  We  are  free  to  step  out  and  appeal  to  the  people 
on  our  records.  We  have  not  got  to  go  to  a  primary.  So  far 
as  the  Board  of  Control  in  the  city  of  Toronto  is  concerned, 
I  may  say  that  it  was  established  in  1897.  We  go  to  the  people 
every  year;  we  have  to  come  up  for  re-election  every  year.  By 
this  means  I  think  we  have  perhaps  one  of  the  best  forms  of 
government.  We  do  not  change  our  civic  officials.  Our  police- 
men are  handled  by  the  Police  Commission ;  they  appoint  all 
the  policemen.     The  police  are  appointed  during  good  behavior. 


154  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

As  long  as  a  civil  servant  in  Toronto  fills  the  position  and  does 
the  work  that  he  is  put  there  to  do  he  is  not  changed.  We 
think  a  continuity  of  service  is  the  best  service  in  any  country  or 
in  any  city.  We  have  a  city  treasurer  who  has  been  in  the  employ 
of  the  city  for  more  than  thirty-four  years.  Our  engineer  has 
been  there  for  twelve  or  fifteen  years,  and  we  have  any  number 
of  employees  who  have  been  in  the  city  service  from  twenty 
to  thirty-seven  years  without  any  change.  We  are  trying  to 
adopt  at  the  present  time  a  new  system  of  paying  employees. 
We  have  always  heretofore  advanced  men  as  the  Council  felt 
they  were  entitled  to  receive  a  little  larger  salary.  We  felt  we 
should  put  the  emoluments  on  the  position  and  not  on  the  man. 
We  felt' that  after  a  man  has  been  in  class  A  or  class  B  for  a 
certain  time,  then  we  should  raise  them  up  a  class  and  by  that 
means  are  able  to  give  an  increase  in  salary. 


Iowa  Unionist  (Des  Moines).  April  12,  1907. 

Organized  Labor  Opposes  Commission  Plan. 

We  recommend  to  the  attention  of  laboring  men  who  have 
been  led  to  believe  that  the  movement  for  a  business  administra- 
tion of  the  city  means  the  elimination  of  the  wage  earner  as  a  fac- 
tor, the  following  report  of  the  action  of  the  Board  of  Trade  of 
Fort  Worth,  Texas,  immediately  following  the  adoption  of  the 
new  charter  last  week. 

The  Fort  Worth  Record  says : — 

According  to  a  decision  readied  at  a  special  meeting  of  the 
directors  lield  at  10  o'clocli  yesterday  morning,  the  Board  of  Trade 
will  take  the  initiative  in  selecting  men  for  commissioners  under 
the  new  charter. 

The  matter  was  exhaustively  discussed  by  all  the  directors, 
and  it  was  decided  that  as  the  election  of  men  to  be  had  at  the 
helm  of  the  city  government  involves  the  interests  of  the  city, 
and  that  it  is  non-political  in  nature,  there  being  no  organization 
to  take  the  matter  in  hand,  there  could  be  no  impropriety  in  the 
board   taking   action    in    the   premises. 

It  was  then  decided  that  each  of  the  civic  organizations  in 
the  city  and  the  Federation  of  Labor  be  invited  to  send  five 
of  their  number  to  another  conference  to  be  held  in  the  board  of 
trade  rooms  next  Saturday  at  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when  the 
proposition  will  receive  such  action  as  deemed  expedient. 

It  was  especially  stated  that  this  is  not  an  effort  on  the  part 
of  the  board  to  delegate  to  itself  the  selection  of  this  ticket.  Every 
organization  in  the  city  is  invited  to  send  representatives  to  this 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  155 

meeting    under   instructions   or    with    power    to   act_  for   their   or- 
ganization  as  each   may   determine. 

Otficers  of  several  of  the  leagues  have  already  issued  calls 
and  the  executive  committee  of  the  Federation  of  Labor  is  expect- 
ed to  take  action   today. 

This  movement  on  the  part  of  the  Board  cf  Trade  has  received 
practically  the  unanimous  approval  of  all  whose  opinion  has  been 
expressed  on  the  subject. 

The  wage  earners  of  Des  Moines  are  just  as  much  interested 
in  economical  government  as  anybody,  perhaps  more  than  any- 
body, and  they  are  and  always  will  be  a  majority.  So  long  as 
the  majority  rules,  and  so  long  as  every  ordinance  is  subject 
to  popular  approval,  on  the  presentation  of  a  moderate  petition 
which  labor  can  rally  on  short  notice,  how  can  labor  be  deprived 
of  any  of  its  rights  of  citizenship,  even  if  the  attempt  should  be 
made? 

In  Fort  Worth  the  representatives  of  labor  are  invited  to  assist 
in  naming  a  ticket  for  the  first  commission,  or  board  of  directors, 
that  will  represent  every  element  in  the  city.  This  shows  that 
the  commission  form  of  government  is  not  promoted  by  elements 
hostile  to  labor.  We  hope  every  laboring  man  in  Des  Moines 
will  give  a  careful  reading  to  Mr.  Earle's  exposition  of  the  new 
form  of  government  and  prepare  to  assist  in  securing  a  commis- 
sion when  the  time  comes,  made  up  of  the  very  best  and  most 
representative  men  of  all  classes  in  Des  Moines. — Register  and 
Leader. 

Organized  labor  was  given  a  voice  in  constructing  the  pro- 
visions of  the  charter,  which  was  adopted  at  Fort  Worth.  The 
provisions  are  entirely  different  from  those  proposed  in  the  Des- 
Moines  bill,  or  that  are  in  vogue  in  Galveston.  The  Fort  Worth 
people,  all  working  in  harmony,  eliminated  objectionable  fea- 
tures in  drafting  a  new  charter  provision. 

In  Des  Moines,  a  committee  of  less  than  65  drafted  the  bill, 
and  organized  labor  was  snubbed  entirely.  The  result  is,  a  bill 
was  railroaded  through  the  legislature  that  is  objectionable  in 
many  instances  to  the  wage  workers. 

It  is  no  argument  for  the  Des  Moines  plan  to  say  that  wage 
earners  are  in  the  majority,  and  can  elect  their  own  members 
to  office.  Organized  labor  is  not  anxious  to  elect  its  own  mem- 
bers to  office  clothed  with  dictatorial  power  that  the  Des  Moines 
plan  proposes.  The  Des  Moines  plan  proposes  nothing  less  than 
a  monarchial  form  of  government,  because  all  but  five  officers 
are  appointive. 

In  Fort  Worth  the  laboring  people  were  given  decent  con- 
sideration. They  participated  in  drafting  a  measure  to  be  voted 
on.  Here  is  a  partial  report  from  the  Union  Banner  of  Fort 
Worth,  representing  organized  labor : 

By  a  vote  of  2,178  for  and  405  against,  Tuesday  of  this  week. 
Fort  Worth  adopted   its   new    charter,   and   for   the    first   time   in 


156  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 


the  history  of  Texas — and,  so  far  as  we  know,  in  the  United 
States — a  city  is  to  be  governed  by  a  charter  in  the  framing  ot 
which  citizens  in  every  walk  of  life   participated. 

Yes,  organized  labor  as  organized  labor,  assisted  in  the  fram- 
ing of  the  new  charter  and  organized  labor  as  organized  labor 
voted  for  the  new  charter. 

Then  under  this  charter,  the  city  can,  when  it  sees  lit,  engage 
in  conducting  any  of  its  public  utilities,  and  all  franchises  granted 
hereafter  will  have  to  pay  to  the  city  three  per  cent  of  its  gross 
earnings. 

The  board  of  school  trustees  will  hereafter  be  elected  by  the 
people  at  a  special  election  held  for  that  purpose  alone. 

Organized  labor  has  never  asked  for  anything  of  a  selfish  na- 
ture and  V,  e  do  not  expect  to  live  to  see  it  do  so.  It  lias  always 
asked  for  those  things  which  would  benefit  union  and  non-union 
men  alike.  Naturally,  we  will  expect  to  see  the  eight-hour  day 
inaugurated  in  those  departments  where  such  conditions  ought  to 
prevail— the  water  works  and  electric  departments  and  street 
work.  The  eiglit-hour  day  for  the  man  who  toils  is  the  logical 
work  day. 

We  expect  to  see  skilled  men  in  all  of  those  departments 
which  call  for  skilled  men — men  of  the  highest  skill. 

None  of  the  above  good  features  are  contained  in  the  Des 

Moines  bill,  for  the  reason  that  the  professional  politicians  and 

disgruntled  office  seekers  and  unionwreckers  who  drafted  the  bill 

ignored  organized  labor  and  other  classes,  drafted  a  bill  to  their 

own  liking  and  railroaded  it  through  the  legislature,  but  they  will 

never   force  it  on   the   people   of   Des    IMoines,   notwithstanding 

misrepresentation  by  the  three  subsidized  dailies. 


Midwestern  (Des  Moines).  3:  35-6.  June,  1909. 

Des  Moines  Plan.     W.  W.  Wise. 

A  few  weeks  ago  the  Des  Moines  police  matron,  under  civil 
service,  was  discharged  by  the  superintendent  of  public  safety. 
The  position  had  been  held  by  her  for  thirteen  years;  in  fact, 
she  had  grown  old  in  the  service.  Her  standing  in  the  com- 
munity was  attested  by  the  fact  that  at  least  125  of  the  promi- 
nent club  women  of  the  city  appeared  before  the  city  council 
upon  her  appeal.  So  indignant  were  they  over  the  matter  that 
they  openly  and  loudly  protested  against  what  they  claimed  was 
an  awful  injustice.  My  opponent,  Mr.  MacVicar,  and  the  super- 
intendent of  public  accounts,  voted  for  her  retention ;  but  the 
superintendent  of  public  safety,  who  had  discharged  her,  in- 
sisted   upon   the  discharge   being  made  permanent.     Under  this 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  157 

wonderful  new  commission  plan  law  appeals  must  be  made  to 
the  council,  and  if  the  charges  of  "Sir.  MacVicar  are  true,  that  a 
combination  existed  in  the  council,  of  which  the  superintendent 
of  public  safety  was  the  controlling  spirit,  the  latter  won  his 
point  through  that  combination.  The  lady  appealed  to  the  district 
court  and  was  sustained,  the  court  stating  that  the  charges  were 
entirely  too  flimsy  for  serious  consideration. 

A  few  days  ago  the  superintendent  of  public  safety  was 
criticized  by  the  press  for  selling  some  old  junk  that  had  accumu- 
lated around  the  police  department  and  not  turning  the  proceeds 
in  to  the  treasurer  immediately  upon  receipt  thereof.  The  matter 
was  referred  to  the  city  solicitor  for  an  opinion,  who  said  that 
there  was  some  question  as  to  the  ownership  of  the  junk,  or 
words  to  that  effect,  but  advised  the  superintendent  of  public 
safety  to  turn  the  money  in  immediately.  A  prominent  attorney, 
commenting  upon  the  occurrence,  said  that  no  more  ridiculous 
thing  could  have  occurred  than  for  a  superior  officer  to  call  upon 
a  subordinate,  whom  he  helped  to  appoint,  for  an  opinion  of 
vindication. 

There  has  been  constant  wrangling  between  the  superintend- 
ent of  public  safety  and  the  police  judge,  with  threats  of  re- 
moving the  judge.  The  department  of  public  safety  naturally 
becomes  the  prosecuting  witness,  as  the  police  department  makes 
all  arrests  and  is  naturally  very  desirous  of  conviction.  Think, 
then,  what  a  travesty  on  common  sense  for  the  superintendent 
of  this  department  to  have  in  his  charge  the  police  judge,  thereby 
making  the  court  subordinate  to  the  prosecuting  witness ! 

If  three  political  tricksters  should  be  elected  as  councilmen 
and  control  all  of  the  appointments  above  enumerated,  they  would 
undoubtedly  make  the  horde  of  poor  bums  and  drunks  who  are 
constantly  at  the  mercy  of  the  police  court  pay  political  tribute 
and  become  part  and  parcel  of  the  machine  in  power.  The  pat- 
ronage of  a  municipality  has  caused  more  trouble  and  made  it 
more  difficult  to  elect  good  men  to  office  than  almost  all  the  other 
elements  combined.  In  the  past  more  thought  has  been  given 
to  this  subject,  in  an  endeavor  to  eliminate  this  feature  from 
politics  by  state  legislation,  than  along  any  other  single  line  touch- 
ing  upon    municipal    affairs.      Comes    nov/    the    Des    Aloin.s    or 


158  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

■commission  plan  and  annuls  all  of  the  beneficial  legislation  along 
these  lines ! 

The  volume  of  business  for  each  year  was  almost  identical, 
and  the  results  were  fully  as  good  in  1907  under  the  old  form 
of  government  as  in  1908  under  the  Des  Moines  plan.  When 
one  takes  into  consideration  the  disheartening  conditions  under 
which  the  business  was  conducted  in  1907,  the  results  were  phe- 
nomenal ;  first,  the  fight  on  the  adoption  of  the  plan ;  second, 
the  grooming  of  candidates  for  office ;  third,  the  active  cam- 
paign for  nomination  ;  fourth,  the  fight  for  election.  There  was 
not  a  day  during  the  entire  year  of  1907  but  what  the  atmosphere 
was  surcharged  with  the  muck  from  political  mud-slinging. 
Moreover,  the  official  pay-roll  of  1908  as  compared  with  that 
of  1907,  as  they  appear  in  the  appropriation  ordinance  of  the 
two  years,  shows  that  of  1908  to  be  some  $9,000  the  greater. 
This  is  exclusive  of  the  police  and  fire  departments.  If  the 
theory  of  the  Des  Moines  plan  is  correct,  the  increased  pay- 
roll should  produce  greater  efficiency,  but  the  above  comparison 
shows  that  such  is  not  the  case.  The  Des  Moines  plan  cannot 
be  called  a  success  unless  the  results  attained  under  it  are  bet- 
ter than  those  under  the  old  plan. 

Therefore  we  are  brought  back  to  the  proposition  that  there 
can  be  good  government  under  a  bad  system,  or  bad  government 
-under  a  good  system.  The  results  will  depend  entirely  upon  the 
men,  as  good  men  will  produce  good  results  under  the  worst 
system,  and  bad  men  will  produce  bad  results  under  the  best 
system.  The  question  then  resolves  itself  into  this :  What  sys- 
tem will  be  most  likely  to  make  it  possible  to  elect  good  men? 
The  results  above  shown  must  be  conclusive  evidence  to  the 
mind  of  any  fair-minded  person  that  the  commission  plan  of 
government  is  not  calculated  to  bring  about  these  results.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  furnishes  all  of  the  opportunity  desired  by 
the  ward  politician  to  obtain  office  and  remain  in  office,  and 
"build  up  a  gigantic  and  irresistible  political  machine,  which  the 
imited  efforts  of  the  best  element  in  a  city  would  be  unable  to 
overcome.  The  results  in  the  city  of  Des  Moines  during  the 
first  year  imder  the  Des  Moines  plan  give  ample  proof  of  the 
truthfulness    of    this    statement,    when    the    entire    press    of    the 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  I59 

city,  the  united  efforts  of  the  two  commercial  clubs  and  the 
Greater  Des  Moines  Committee,  have  been  unable  to  keep  down 
bickering,  strife  and  political  machinations. 


Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  January  9,  1907. 
City  Council  Needed  No  Less  than  a  Mayor. 

City  government  consists  of  two  things :  First,  legislation 
or  ordinance-making  subject  to  general  statutes;  and,  second, 
execution  or  administration  of  the  people's  wishes  and  will 
as  expressed  in  the  ordinances.  The  advocates  of  the  Galves- 
ton plan  contend  that  cities  are  creatures  of  law  and  hence 
ordinances  are  merely  executive  regulations  under  general 
statutes. 

If  we  examine  the  provisions  of  the  code  of  Iowa,  we  find 
that  most  of  the  provisions  affecting  city  affairs  are  permissive 
or  optional.  We  may  levy  a  bridge  tax  or  not,  as  the  citizens 
decide.  We  are  not  ordered  to  do  so.  The  code  simply  puts 
a  top  limit  to  the  amount  of  the  levy.  The  same  is  true  with 
taxes  for  water  and  lighting,  sewers,  streets  and  city  expenses 
generally.  We  need  not  have  libraries  or  parks  or  bridges  or 
sewers  or  asphalt  or  a  hundred  and  more  things  common  in 
city  government,  if  we  so  conclude.  The  code  simply  permits 
citizens  to  exercise  all  of  the  vast  powers  of  taxation  without 
let  or  hindrance  within  certain  bounds. 

The  two  functions  of  legislation  and  execution  require  dif- 
ferent types  of  mind.  Men  may  be  good  law  makers  and  coun- 
cilmen  yet  know  little  or  nothing  about  the  technical  require- 
ments demanded  of  a  civil  engineer  or  chief  of  police.  The 
directory  boards  of  our  banks  and  insurance  companies  or  great 
business  corporations  are  made  up  usually  of  excellent  direct- 
ors,— of  prudent  councillors  and  sucessful  men  in  certain  lines 
— their  advice  and  experience  are  valuable;  they  are  cool-headed 
and  impartial  judges  and  will  render  sound  judgments  when  two 
different  policies  are  urged  upon  them — but  in  few  cases  would 
they  be  good  cashiers  or  field  officers  or  competent  to  under- 
take  any  of   the   numerous    executive   or  technical  positions   in 


i6o  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

the  business  of  the  companies  which  they  legislate  for  and 
supervise  as  directors. 

Perhaps  the  most  important  work  after  passing  ordinances 
that  should  not  be  lost  sight  of  in  our  discussion  of  the  pro- 
posal to  abolish  our  councilmanic  system  is  the  legislative  func- 
tion of  supervising  the  conduct  of  the  executive  departments. 
The  council  will  constitute  a  jury  or  committee  of  inspection 
precisely  as  the  board  of  directors  do.  They  can  and  will  cross- 
examine  administrative  officers,  investigate  the  results  of  vari- 
ous methods  pursued  or  advocated,  consider  relative  merits  of 
conflicting  departments  or  business  ventures  and  compare  costs 
and  eliminate  expensive  profitless  offices.  Being  exempt  from  the 
immediate  interests  and  prejudices  of  executive  officers,  each 
of  whom  is  anxious  to  exalt  and  magnify  his  own  department 
or  office,  the  councilmen  will  act  both  as  a  court  of  high  resort 
and  as  a  jury. 

The  benefits  and  safety  of  a  council  are  the  supreme  safe- 
guards of  a  city  democracy  precisely  as  a  board  of  directors 
are  guardians  of  the  interests  of  depositors  and  stock  holders 
of  banks.  A  city  cannot  get  along  with  one-man  power  more 
safely  than  banks  or  corporations  can  afford  to  dispense  with 
their  directory  boards.  We  can't  get  perfection  with  human 
nature  and  human  interests  what  they  are  and  are  likely  to  be. 


Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  January  i6,  1907. 

Some  Facts  and  Figures.     W.    N.  Jordan. 

To  the  ^Members  of  the  Polk  County  Republican  Club: 

Gentlemen: — 

We,  your  committee,  who  were  appointed  to  look  into 
the  form  of  government  for  Galveston,  Indianapolis,  and  Des 
Moines,  have  the  honor  to  report  as  follows : 

Des  Moines  has  lowered  her  city  tax  levy  from  41.5  mills  in 
1900  to  39.7  mills  in  1906.  Indianapolis  has  increased  her  tax  levy 
from  60  cents  on  the  one  hundred  dollars  in  1899  to  88  cents 
in  1906. 

In  Indianapolis,  the  library  tax  is  not  included  in  the  city 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  i6i 

tax,  nor  is  the  library  or  park  tax  included  on  the  Des  Moines 
rate  on  the  one  hundred.  In  Des  Moines,  the  city  builds  and 
sustains  the  library.  In  Indianapolis,  the  library  is  cared  for 
entirely,  and  is  a  part  of  the  school  system.  Galveston  is  free 
from  the  library  tax  for  building  and  maintenance.  She  has  an 
endowment  of  $400,000.00  left  her  by  a  patriotic  citizen,  thus 
saving  $16,000.00  over  Des  Moines  per  year. 

The  fact  that  Indianapolis  covers  so  much  less  territory 
than  Des  Moines  should  appeal  to  any  business  man  that  the 
-expenses  of  government  are  much  less  in  solidly  compact  area 

The  great  mistake  that  Des  Moines  made  was  in  paying 
for  her  improvements  as  she  went  along,  instead  of  following 
the  system  of  bonding  the  town  for  permanent  improvements, 
as  is  followed  in  Indianapolis  and  Galveston. 

Des  Moines,  cursed  with  its  enormous  territory,  like  a  mill- 
stone around  her  neck,  will  always  be  a  more  expensive  plant  for 
government  purposes  than  Indianapolis,  whatever  system  you 
have,  Des  Moines,  Indianapolis,  Galveston,  Houston,  or  Min- 
neapolis. 

Des  Moines  has  no  contingent  liability  in  its  paying  special 
assessment  tax,  whereas  Indianapolis  has  a  contingent  liability 
on  about  $2,000,000.00. 

Neither  Galveston  nor  Indianapolis  derives  any  appreciable 
revenue  from  its  franchises,  any  more  than  does  Des  Moines, 
but  the  spirit  of  Indianapolis  is  rather  to  demand  perfect  serv- 
ice from  the  gas  company,  the  water  company,  the  street  car 
company,  telephone  and  electric  companies,  and  a  reduction  in 
price  to  the  people  rather  than  a  revenue-bearing  investment  for 
the  city  as  a  whole.  None  of  the  said  indebtedness  was  in- 
curred in  the  building  of  the  great  sea  wall,  that  being  built 
from  county  funds.  Of  the  income  of  Galveston,  she  spends 
$83,000.00  for  grade  raising,  while  Des  Moines  spends  annually 
a  grading  fund  amounting  to  $45,000.00. 

Of  the  street  cleaning  fund,  Indianapolis  pays  $65,000.00  by 
contract  for  sprinkling  unimproved  streets :  Des  Moines  spends 
none. 

Indianapolis  pays  $52,000.00  a  year  for  removal  of  garbage, 
which  garbage  includes  only  organic  matter. 


i62  COMMISSION  PLAN  OF 

The  Galveston  police  department  cost  $42,000.00,  Des  Moines 
$87,150.00,  Indianapolis  $257,509.50,  last  year,  1905.  Galveston 
had  five  murders  and  forty-five  attempted  murders ;  Des  Moines 
records  show  one  murder;  two  deaths  with  suspicion  of  murder, 
and  fourteen  attempted  murders  for  the  same  year.  Indian- 
apolis, in  the  fall  of  1906,  had  two  policemen  killed  and  the 
murderers  are  unapprehended.  One  thousand  prisoners  pass 
through  the  police  court  monthly,  and  the  newspapers  eternally 
roast  the  police  department. 

Galveston  fire  department  cost  for  maintenance  $52,830.00 
in  1906;  Des  Moines,  in  1906,  $113,500.00;  Indianapolis,  $275,- 
981.75. 

Galveston  park  system  cost  $2,000.00  during  the  year  and 
Des  Moines  $60,000.00  for  purchase  and  maintenance,  and 
Indianapolis,  $118,700.00,  of  which  $30,000.00  was  contributed 
from  other  sources. 

Galveston  has  no  bridges  and  Marion  County  builds  them  all 
in  Indianapolis,  while  Des  Moines  pays  $50,000.00  a  year  to 
construct  and  maintain  its  bridges. 

Galveston  has  eight  public  schools,  maintained  at  a  cost  of 
$78,000.00,  one-third  of  which  is  paid  by  the  state.  Of  the 
buildings,  the  two  largest  were  gifts  from  the  men  whose  names 
they  bear. 

Des  Moines  has  fifty-four  public  schools,  and  it  pays  annu- 
ally $477,000.00  for  their  support. 

Donations  from  philanthropists  have  built  Galveston  her 
two  largest  school  buildings,  sixteen  fountains,  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 
building,  public  library,  orphans'  home,  the  old  people's  home,, 
and  hospital.  The  United  States  government  has  spent  more  than 
$6,000,000.00  in  making  improvements  in  the  city. 

Indianapolis  invited  the  national  Saengerfest  to  meet  in  their 
city  next  year,  and  they  discovered  to  their  dismay  that  they 
had  no  building  large  enough  to  entertain  the  assembly.  The  city 
officers  of  the  city  of  Indianapolis  are  all  housed  in  the  basement 
of  the  Court  House.  It  is  true  that  they  have  a  building  nearly 
twice  as  large  as  the  City  Hall,  and  well  built,  known  as  the 
Tomlinson  House.  If  the  city  vacates  the  rooms  in  the  Court 
House,  they  could  easily  be  housed  in  this  hall.     Adjoining  this 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  163 

hall  is  a  plat  of  ground,  used  as  a  market  place,  (also  given 
to  the  city,  on  condition  that  a  market  place  be  maintained 
there).  The  mayor,  in  order  to  fulfill  his  agreement  in  enter- 
taining the  Saengerfest,  conceived  the  brilliant  idea  of  building 
a  coliseum,  (called  the  Coliseum,  City  Hall,  and  Market  Place). 
To  a  limited  extent  it  will  be  used  as  a  city  hall  and  market 
place.  So  he  called  his  city  council  together  and  appropriated 
$300,000.00  for  the  erection  of  this  coliseum,  in  which  to  en- 
tertain the  Saengerfest.  This  action  is  denounced  by  leading 
lawyers  as  illegal  and  high-handed. 

There  is  another  thing  which  aroused  the  fierce  indigna- 
tion of  the  citizens,  and  the  cry  of  graft  was  heard  from  street- 
corner  to  street-corner.  That  was  the  granting  of  a  fran- 
chise known  as  the  Merchants'  Heat  &  Light  Co.  without  a 
dollar  of  benefit  to  the  city.  It  was  voted  to  the  leaders  of 
the  faction  which  was  in  control  of  the  city  government. 

Some  years  ago,  the  Consumers'  Gas  Co.  laid  their  mains 
in  the  city  of  Indianapolis,  and  under  a  contract  with  the  city, 
the  city  had  the  first  option  by  appraisement  of  the  purchase  of 
these  gas  mains.  On  the  13th  day  of  November,  the  city  of 
Indianapolis  appraised  the  mains  of  the  franchise  at  one  hun- 
dred dollars  and  disposed  of  the  same  to  the  Citizens'  Gas  Co. 

The  matter  is  now  in  court.  A  rival  gas  company  with  an 
authorized  capital  of  $1,000,000.00  of  which  they  have  $500,000.00 
subscribed  and  $30,000.00  in  cash  paid  in,  have  offered  to  fur- 
nish the  city  of  Indianapolis  with  artificial  gas  at  60  cents  per 
1,000  feet,  whereas  the  city  is  now  paying  90  cents.  The  pub- 
lic is  and  has  been  for  a  long  time,  demanding  to  know  why 
the  city  would  sell  a  franchise  including  valuable  mains  and 
connections  for  $100.00  furnishing  gas  at  90  cents  and  refuse  to 
grant  a  franchise  to  a  company,  both  willing  and  able  to  furnish 
gas  at  60  cents  to  the  common  people. 

Let  us  take  one  illustration :  Indianapolis  has  always  mani- 
fested toward  municipal  corporations  a  liberal  spirit  in  marked 
contrast  with  the  hell-hounding  spirit  manifested  by  some  of 
our  citizens  toward  the  civic  corporations. 

Indiana  has  a  law  by  which  the  Board  of  Public  Works 
may    open    a    street    through    private    property    and    off-set    the 


i64  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

benefits  against  the  damages  to  the  abutting  property  owner. 
The  practical  result  of  this  law  is  that  it  seldom  costs  the  city 
a  very  appreciable  sum  of  money  to  open  a  street.  Snch  a 
law  could  not  be  enacted  in  Iowa  without  a  constitutional  amend- 
ment. 

In  Indianapolis,  all  improvements  are  in  the  hands  of  the 
Board  of  Public 'Works.  Like  all  other  officers  (excepting  the 
city  council  and  city  clerk),  they  are  appointed  by  the  mayor, 
and  hold  office  during  his  pleasure.  The  Board  of  Public  Works 
decide  upon  what  street  shall  be  improved,  issue  orders  for 
the  curbing,  paving,  sewers  and  sidewalks,  and  they  decide  on 
the  kind  of  material  and  the  price  thereof. 

The  work  proceeds  without  the  consultation  of  the  citizens 
thereof  unless  the  abutting  property  owners  file  a  protest  with 
the  city  council.  The  city  council  is  composed  of  twenty-cne 
men,  fifteen  of  whom  are  elected  from  the  fifteen  wards  of  the 
city,  respectively,  and  six  aldermen-at-large.  If  the  protest  is 
sustained  by  fifteen  votes  of  the  council,  the  work  ceases.  I 
asked  an  alderman  if  the  protests  of  the  property  owners  were 
ever  sustained,  and  he  answered  "No." 

In  Des  Moines,  a  majority  of  the  abutting  property  owners 
may  petition  for  any  improvement,  or  seven  members  of  the 
city  council  may  order  an  improvement  without  consultation 
with  the  abutting  property  owner.  But  they  never  do  it.  Why? 
Because  they  believe  the  people  who  pay  for  the  improvements 
should  be  consulted. 

The  city  government  of  Indianapolis  is  on  the  federal  plan. 
The  elective  officers  are  the  mayor,  city  clerk,  and  aldermen. 
The  mayor  appoints  the  three  members  of  the  Board  of  Pub- 
lic Works,  and  at  a  salary  of  $2,000.00  each  per  annum ;  three 
members  of  the  Board  of  Public  Safety;  and  the  members 
of  the  Board  of  Public  Health,  the  comptroller,  the  engineer, 
and  all  other  officers  in  the  government  from  the  lowest  to 
the  highest,  except  those  I  have  stated  are  elected.  This  plan 
has  been  in  force  seventeen  years. 

The  Galveston  system  is  one  of  commission,  composed  of 
five  commissioners,  who  transact  all  of  the  business  of  the  city, 
and  the  Galveston  system  proves  much  more  expensive  than 
that  of  Des  Moines. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  165 

Of  the  Galveston  debt,  $1,030,000.00  was  bond  issue  for  the 
purpose  of  raising  the  grade  of  the  city,  and  the  state  of  Texas 
remitted  all  county  and  state  taxes  collected  in  Galveston  for 
a  period  of  seventeen  years  to  pay  this  debt. 

When  a  franchise  is  asked  of  the  city  of  Indianapolis,  it 
must  have  the  approval  of  the  mayor,  who  sends  it  to  the  Board 
of  Public  Works  (his  appointees).  It  lies  on  the  desk  of  the 
Board  of  Public  Works  for  two  weeks,  and  must  have  their 
approval.  Then  it  is  sent  to  the  city  council  wherein  it  lies  two 
•  weeks  and  must  be  passed  by  a  two-thirds  Vote.  There  is  no 
referendum.     (No  vote  by  the  people.) 

■  '  The  city  council  has  but  little  to  do  except  the  passing  of 
the  annual  budget  once  a  year,  passing  some  ordinances  and  vot- 
ing on  franchises.  The  mayor  and  the  members  of  the  city 
cotmcil  rapidly  come  to  an  agreement  and  understanding. 

The  city  of  Indianapolis  is  not  any  freer  from  the  charge 
of  graft  and  corruption  in  ofifice  than  is  Des  Moines.  Whether 
there  is  any  foundation  in  fact  for  such  charges,  I  cannot,  of 
course,  say. 

Take  the  Chicago,  Indianapolis,  &  Evansville  franchise,  which 
was  put  through  the  council  early  in  1906.  The  franchise  gave 
them  the  right  to  pass  through  important  business  and  resi- 
dential portions  of  the  city,  and  a  further  privilege  of  building 
a  freight  depot  in  the  square,  immediately  across  the  street 
from  the  State  House  (a  beautiful  place  for  a  freight  yard).' 
The  public  at  large  cannot  find  out  who  is  back  of  the  enter- 
prise. Whether  the  company  is  a  corporation  on  a  substantial 
basis,  or  not,  is  unknown.  This  was  so  bitterly  fought  and 
denounced,  that  the  criminal  judge  directed  the  Grand  Jury 
at  the  two  last  terms  to  probe  the  matter  to  the  bottom. 

Another  matter  that  was  put  through  the  city  council  Ly  the' 
mayor  was  the  modification  of  the  Indiana  Southern,  franchise 
or  contract,  which  permitted  them  to  change  from  elevated 
tracks  down  to  the  grade  level  at  Merrill  street  and  run  into 
the  Unioti  Depot.  This  modification  took  place  in  the  face  of 
the  state  law,  which  now  requires  the  elevation  of  the  street 
railways,  with  damages  to  the  abutting  property  owners,  of 
which  damages  the  city  shall  pay  ^3^3  per  cent. 


i66  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

There  was  another  thing  which  aroused  the  enraged  feel- 
ings of  the  citizens  of  Indianapolis.  The  legislature  was  con- 
templating a  bill  compelling  the  elevation  of  the  street  rail- 
way tracks.  The  bill  was  introduced  with  every  prospect  of 
its  passage,  when  the  mayor  called  together  his  city  council, 
and  quietly  put  the  bill  through  the  city  council,  by  which  the 
€ity  was  to  pay  ssVs  per  cent.  Then  the  railroad  lawyers 
went  directly  to  the  legislature,  called  attention  to  this  contract, 
and  demanded  that  a  law  be  passed  so  as  to  compel  the  city 
to  live  up  to  that  agreement,  which  the  legislature  did. 

The  Galveston  plan,  as  I  view  it,  is  one  of  commission.  It 
is  a  perpetual  body.  (It  is  a  potentially  perfect  political  ma- 
chine.) 

There  has  been  no  change  in  the  membership  of  the  Gal- 
veston commission  since  it  was  organized  in  1900  (except  on 
the  death  of  a  member). 

The  extensive  powers  of  the  commissioners  have  enabled 
them  to  control  all  political  factions  and  completely  to  crush 
the  opposition.  The  commissioners'  faction  is  in  complete  con- 
trol and  its  leaders  dictate  nominations  of  commissioners,  mem- 
bers of  the  legislature  and  congressmen. 

The  farmers  of  Galveston  county  call  the  Galveston  commis- 
sioners and  grade  raising  board  "a  gang  of  thieves." 

The  Galveston  commissioners  and  city  officials  are  not  easily 
accessible  to  the  citizens  of  the  city,  and  give  but  a  small  portion 
of  their  time  to  the  city's  business. 

None  of  the  commissioners  (except  the  mayor)  has  an  office 
in  the  City  Hall. 

All  of  them  have  other  extensive  business  interests  and 
citizens  seeking  redress  or  assistance  must  run  the  gauntlet  of 
the  outside  office  and  closed  door  of  the  private  bnsiress  office. 

The  city  auditor  has  no  office  in  the  City  Hall. 

The  city  treasurer  has  no  office  in  the  City  Hall. 

The  city  attorney  has  no  office  in  the  City  Hall. 

The  incumbents  of  these  offices  accepted  them  only  on  the 
condition  that  they  might  continue  also  in  their  other  business 
<and  offices. 

In  Houston,  which  also  has  a  commission  form  of  government 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERXMENT  167 

where  the  commissioners  are  required  to  stay  in  the  City  Hall 
every  day,  business  men  do  not  hold  these  positions  although 
the  salaries  are  higher  than  the  proposed  salaries  of  the  Des 
Moines  commissioners.  One  commissioner  was  formerly  a 
scavenger,  another  a  blacksmith,  justice  of  the  peace  and  alder- 
man, a  third  a  railroad  auditor,  a  fourth,  a  drygoods  merchant, 
and  the  mayor  a  retired  capitalist. 

The  Galveston  commissioners  favor  the  corporation.  The 
only  franchise  given  to  a  corporation  by  the  commission  is  the 
franchise  obtained  by  the  Galveston  Street  Railway  Co..  in 
May  1906.  It  was  not  referred  to  a  vote  of  the  people.  (This 
franchise  was  given  for  a  period  of  fifty  years.)  The  city 
received  no  compensation  for  this  franchise  and  collected  no 
franchise  taxes  on  it.  The  city  receives  no  percentage  of  the 
gross  or  net  receipts.  The  company  charges  a  straigl  t  five 
cent  fare  and  transfers  are  issued  only  from  May  to  October. 
The  company  paves  the  space  between  the  rails  and  one  foot 
on  each  side.  There  are  thirty-eight  miles  of  tracks  and  the 
property  is  assessed  at  $243,150.00  or  $6,398.00  per  mile. 

Des  Moines  has  76.95  miles  and  is  assessed  at  $792,000.00,  or 
$10,355.00  per  mile   (and  only  about  62  miles  straight). 

Comparative  Statement 

Des  Moines  Indianapolis  Galveston 

Square   miles    54  28.8  6.5 

Population    (estimated)     . .  75,000  200,000  30,000 

Valuation     67,852,960  158,087,000  48,000,000 

Rate  of  tax  for  municipal 

purpose   7914.  on  $100  .88  on  $100 

Tax    for   all    purposes $2.00  on  $100  $2.14  on  $100  $2.13  on  $100 

Number   lights    2,100  1,683  222 

Park    acreage     650  1.320  16.7 

Number  of  firemen     97  250  53 

Number  of  policemen     62  253  38 

Number  of  miles     paving. .  110  203  18 

Number  of  miles  of  streets  460  About  300  73 

Bonded    debt    $678,000  2,930,800  4,046,000 

Saloons     100  740  73 

Citv  expense    $641,116.00  $1,772,158.00  $577,210.00 

Tax    per    capita 8.66  9.33  21.00 

Total    revenue    641,116.00  1,865,027.00  693,270.00 

Debt    per  capita 9.04  14.55  122.60 

Cost  of  street  lighting     . .  65,867.60  142,500.00  Municipal 

Cost  of  street    cleaning    . .  23,000.00  169,000.00  23,000.00 

The  Galveston  municipal  government  is  not  free  from  "graft." 
The    prosecutor    of    city    cases    in    the    police    court    collects    a 


i68  COMMISSION   PLAN  OF 

fee  of  $10  for  every  criminal,  drunk,  or  vagrant  convicted,  and 
$5  from  every  one  who  pleads  guilty. 

The  city  attorney  collects  $3,000.00  each  year  from  the  city 
as  a  fee  for  special  counsel  and  the  printing  of  abstracts  (in 
addition  to  his  salary  of  $1,200.00).  He  has  appointed  his  law 
partner  as  an  assistant  with  a  salary  of  $900.  They  are  al- 
lowed 5  per  cent  of  all  delinquent  taxes  collected,  as  an  addi-„ 
tional  fee.    A  third  assistant  is  paid  a  salary  of  $600  per  year. 

Total  receipts  and  expenditures  of  the  city  of  Des  Moines 
for  the  year  1906: — 

To   pay  expense   of  Police  Dept.,    Fire  Dept.,   official   pay 
roll,   street   cleaning,   supplies,   erection,   fuel,  and  re- 
pairing of  all   public  buildings,   and   construction  and 

equipment  of  all   fire  houses $301,036.00 

Water    rental     51,484.00 

Lighting    of   the    city    58,862.00 

Building    bridges    and    repairing    52,451.00 

Cleaning,   repairing  all    sewers   of   the   city,    and  building 

intercepting    sewers 31,457.00 

Grading   and   opening  streets   and   alleys    51,535.00 

For   payment  of  bonds  and  interest    43,111.00^ 

For   purchase   of   new   cemetery    4,681.00 

Care  of  cemeteries 4,681.00 

Improvement  fund  for  the  payment  of  all  public  improve- 
ments  where    property   will   not   stand   assessment 35,246.00 

Total  for  municipal  purposes    $651,227.00 

Judgment    fund    16,703.00 

While  we  are  giving  an  outline  of  the  regime  of  Gal- 
veston and  Indianapolis  we  beg  to  call  your  attention  to  the 
fact  that  within  five  years  Des  Moines  has  built  five  new  fire 
houses  and  a  city  library ;  bought  parks,  built  bridges,  reduced 
the  bonded  indebtedness  over  $200,000.00  and  with  all  this  the 
tax  levy  is  less  than  it  was  five  years  ago.  Des  Moines  has 
done  several  things.  It  has  built  and  equipped  five  fire  houses^ 
at  a  cost  of  $75,000.00,  new  bridges  at  the  cost  of  $160,000.00, 
paid  out  $30,000.00  on  account  of  the  flood,  and  $75,000.00  on 
account  of  smallpox,  and  has  built  four  iniles  of  intercepting 
sewer.  It  has  paid  $100,000.00  of  a  floating  debt.  Des  Moines 
has  paid  over  $300,000.00  in  the  last  five  years  for  city  parks 
and  maintenance,  and  has  paid  $195,000.00  for  a  city  library.  We 
have  on  hand  bridges  and  fire  equipment  to  accommodate  a  city 
of  300,000  people.  Yet  Des  Moines  has  on  hand  $240,955.00  of 
vvhich  almost  $30,000.00  is  available  to  be  used  in  the  reduction 
of  the  city's  indebtedness. 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  169 

'-We  are  convinced  that  neither  the  Galveston  plan  nor  the 
Indianapolis  plan  will  meet  the  wants  and  demands  of  the  city  of 
Des  Moines. 

Des  Moines  stands  almost  alone  for  low  expenses,  and  we 
are  one  of  the  few  cities  in  the  United  States  where  our  as- 
sessed valuation  is  less  than  that  employed  today  and  the  changes 
that  we  would  recommend  are  fev.',  and  are  as  follows : 

First,  the  Board  of  Puhlic  Works  and  the  Police  and  Fire 
Commission  should  be  appointed  by  the  mayor  without  confir- 
mation and  hold  office  subject  to  his  pleasure. 

Second,  we  would  recommend  that  the  City  Engineer  be 
made  a  member,  ex-officio,  of  the  Board  of  Public  Works. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

W.  N.  Jordan, 
Chairman  Committee. 

Plain   Talk    (Des   Moines).   January    19,    1907. 

Municipal   Reforms   Needed. 

Professor  Herriott's  mode  cf  attack  upon  the  Galveston  or 
commissioner  system  presented  various  considerations  that  meet 
with  general  approval.  He  contended,  first,  that  there  is  no  dis- 
agreement as  to  the  need  o£  vigorous  reforms  in  our  city  govern- 
ment. He  said  there  was  no  serious  discussion  as  to  the  causes 
of  our  trouble,  nor  does  any  one  doubt  that  we  need  some  busi- 
ness principles  in  city  government.  He  disputed  vigorously,  how- 
ever that  the  matter  in  issue  was  simply  a  matter  of  business. 

A  city  is  not  as  easy  to  manage  as  a  grocery  store  or  a  bank. 
If  the  matter  that  bothers  were  simply  a  matter  of  business, 
we  ought  at  once  to  put  the  city  into  commission,  viz:  enter  into 
a  contract  with  some  superintendent  of  operations  of  a  rail- 
way, whereby  we  secure  a  ten-year  contract  imder  which  such 
contractor  undertakes  to  manage  our  affairs  without  further 
bother.  We  could  make  money  by  so  doing. 

But  we  cannot  sublet  a  municipality.  It  is  an  agency  of  gov- 
ernment that  we  must  deal  with,  an  arm  of  the  sovereign  power 
of  the  government  that  exercises  the  power  of  life  and  death 
over  persons  and  property, — an  agency  that  can  dynamite  build- 


I70  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

ings  and  declare  martial  law  in  times  of  peril  in  order  to  promote 
or  protect  the  general  welfare. 

Professor  Herriott  then  attacked  the  Galveston  plan  upon 
several  different  counts.  First,  because  none  of  the  precedents 
offered  in  justification  of  the  radical  change  advocated,  viz, 
making  one  body  both  a  legislative  and  an  executive  organ — • 
were  not  authoritative  or  binding.  Second,  because  the  commis- 
sioner system  was  hostile  to  business  efficiency  as  measured  by 
commercial  and  industrial  standards.  Third,  because  it  is  ob- 
noxious to  democracy,  and  republican  or  free  institutions;  and 
Fourth,  it  was  expressly  in  conflict  with  the  constitution  of  Iowa, 
in  that  it  gave  legislative  duties  (ordinance  and  budget  making 
powers),  to  an  executive  board  and  executive  functions  to  a  law- 
making or  legislative  board. 

The  precedents  urged  on  behalf  of  the  commissioner  system, 
he  disposed  of  summarily,  but  we  believe  effectually.  Galveston's 
city  commission  was  the  child  of  disaster;  its  success  was  the 
result  of  a  terrible  calamity  that  compelled  the  citizens  to  coerce 
their  leading  citizens  into  taking  the  leading  offices.  The  present 
success  and  that  of  Dallas  and  Houston  are  due  to  the  intoxica- 
tion resulting  from  the  furore  of  public  interest  in  t  e  plan 
signified  by  the  magazine  articles,  etc.  Dallas  had  experienced 
a  frightful  mismanagement  and  gross  waste  of  funds,  and  became 
desperate,  and  in  desperation  adopted  the  Galvest  n  model.  But, 
death-bed  repentances  or  spasms  of  reform,  are  seldom  per- 
manently efficacious. 

Washington,  D.  C,  is  much  relied  upon  by  the  advocates  of 
the  commissioner  system,  but  Professor  Harrio't  pointed  out 
that  not  only  did  the  people  of  our  national  capital  have  no  right 
of  self-government,  but  that  they  were  subject  to  military  con- 
trol in  effect,  as  a  United  States  army  officer  must  be  one  of  the 
commissioners.  There  is  no  more  self-government  at  Washing- 
ton than  in  St.  Petersburg.  But  here  in  Iowa,  we  believe  in 
self-government   and   insist   upon   it  as   essential. 

British  councils,  often  cited,  are  not  in  point,  because  they 
range  in  members  from  twelve  to  sixty-four  in  number.  They 
legislate  for  control  and  supervise  English  cities,  but  their  mem- 
bers do  not  undertake  to  manage  directly  the  executive  depart- 


MUNICIFAL   GOVERNMENT  171 

ments.  Furthermore,  we  do  not  have  the  leisure  class  in  America 
that  are  so  much  relied  upon  in  England.  Finally,  we  are  not  a 
part  of  England,  and  English  customs  today  under  the  m  narchial 
forms  and  pretences  are  not  entirely  agreeable  to  our  ways  of 
political  life  and  thought. 

Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  February  2,  1907. 

Dominant    Mayor    Essential   in   Good   City   Government. 

If  specialization  and  the  employment  of  experts  are  essenlial 
to  success  in  modern  business ;  and  if  accountability  and  respon- 
sibility are  imperative  in  city  government  as  well  as  in  business ; 
then  a  central  dominating  mind — a  mayor  with  coercive  powers 
of  co-ordination  and  control — is  a  fundamental  condition  of  an 
efficient  city  administration.  Specialization  in  execitive  work 
both  implies  and  demands  a  head  with  power  of  control  in  the 
carrying  out  of  the  law  and  the  accomplishment  of  the  wishes  of 
the  citizens  as  expressed  through  ordinances. 

Experts  and  specialists,  who  are  in  truth  trained  men,  know 
but  little  outside  their  own  departments  or  fields  of  work.  More- 
over, they  care  little  for  anything  else  than  their  specialty.  More 
important  still,  they  exalt  and  magnify  the  importance  of  their 
particular  office  and  seek  always  (and  very  naturally,  too)  to 
extend  their  work  by  securing  more  funds  and  power  therefor. 
If  we  let  specialists  alone  and  follow  their  lead  each  and  all  will 
expand  and  spread  beyond  all  bounds.  They  would  soon  bank- 
rupt the  treasuries  of  Croesus.  What  is  worse,  the  expansion  of 
departments  in  all  directions  means  immediate  clash,  confusion, 
one  with  another.  Offices  and  departments  will  overlap  and 
interlock.  This  produces  the  confusion  worse  confounded  that 
now  befogs  the  public  mind  and  enables  weak  or  corrupt  city 
officials  to  manipulate   government   for  private  gain. 

But  we  need  and  must  employ  expert  public  servants.  If  so, 
we  must  have  one  over  them  in  full  charge  who  will  compel 
them  to  work  in  harmony,  who  will  coerce  them  into  co-operation 
and  economy,  who  will  make  the  entire  civil  service  of  a  city 
•work  to  the  one  common  objective,  namely,  efficient  government 


172  COMMISSION    PLAN   OF 

at  the  least  cost.     A  powerful  mayor  is  no  less  essential  in  con- 
trolling and  directing  the  various  organs  of  the  body. 

Now  the  function  of  the  mayor  or  central  directing  mind  can 
not,  for  reasons  set  forth  by  Professor  F.  I.  Herriott  of  Drake 
University  and  partially  outlined  by  us  last  week,  can  not  be 
divided  or  "parceled  out"  as  is  proposed  in  the  Galveston  system 
of  city  government.  A  city  administration  is  not  and  can  not  be 
accountable  if  five  men  are  in  charge  of  executive  work.  Our 
old  proverbs  "Too  many  cooks  spoil  the  broth"  and  "What's 
everybody's  business  is  nobody's  business"  are  as  true  as  Holy 
Writ  in  city  government.  Accountability  implies  responsibility; 
and  responsibility  means  direct,  immediate  personal  liabilitj'^  of 
the  person  or  official  charged  with  the  performance  of  a  duty  or 
task.  If  the  officer  or  servant  fails  to  satisfy — if  he  blunders  or 
ignores,  perverts  or  stumbles  in  his  work,  we  discharge  him.  But 
if  some  one  or  seme  body  of  commissioners  are  always  expected 
to  interfere  and  take  over  his  responsibilty,  then  we  can  not 
hold  him  accountable,  in  so  far  as  his  authority  and  power  to 
exercise  his  full  judgment  at  discretion  is  undermined. 

It  is  pure  ignorance  or  senlimentalism  when  advocates  of 
the  Galveston  commission  compare  it  to  the  board  of  directors  of 
banks  and  lousiness  corporations.  The  commission  as  advocated. 
as  we  have  pointed  out.  not  only  legislates — passes  ordinances, 
authorizes  the  budget  and  supervises  the  conduct  and  reports  of 
department  chiefs,  but  it  is  also  charged  with  the  work  of 
"'managing"  the  city's  affairs.  Herein,  Professor  Herriott  con- 
tends, lie  both  the  dangers  and  the  iniquities  of  the  proposed 
plan.  It  not  only  violates  good  business  organization,  but  it 
strikes  squarely  in  the  face  of  all  our  principles  and  traditions  of 
democracy   and   republican   or    representative   institutions. 

Boards  of  directors  do  not  manage  banks.  They  determine 
the  policy  and  supervise  the  president  and  cashier  and  their 
administration,  but  do  not  actually  or  formally  undertake  the 
particular  task  of  conducting  a  bank.  Moreover,  when  they  do 
intrude  into  the  domain  of  the  cashier  and  president  further 
than  giving  advice  upon  loans  and  auditing  annual  accounts  or 
quarterly  statements — they  are  almost  certain  to  make  a  muss 
and  a  mess  of  things  that  no  competent  cashier  or  president  will 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT  I73 

o 

tolerate.  Stockholders  and  directors  alike  look  to  the  cashier  to 
•'make  things  go"  and  for  their  dividends.  It  is  Mr.  Carnegie 
and  Mr.  James  J.  Hill,  Mr.  Marshall  Field,  in  iron  mills,  rail- 
roads and  stores  that  make  profits  and  dividends.  It  is  Messrs. 
Cassidy  and  Pearsall,  McKinney  and  Miller  in  our  city  who  di- 
rect, control  and  manage  our  city  banks  successfully  and  make 
dividends,  and  not  their  directory  boards.  The  latter  are  neces- 
sary as  a  legislative  council,  but  they  should  not  undertake  man- 
agerial vi^ork. 

Precisely  the  same  sort  of  centralized  administration  that 
.prevails  in  all  successful  business  corporations  must  be  repro- 
duced in  our  city  government.  Just  how  to  secure  the  mayor, 
Professor  Herriott  concedes,  is  a  debatable  question.  In  business 
corporations  presidents  and  cashiers  are  usually  elected  by  boards 
of  directors  and  there  is  no  serious  theoretical  objection  to  this 
mode  of  procedure  except  that  city  government  is  not  so  easily 
or  so  quickly  managed  as  a  private  corporation.  Our  practice  and 
tradition  is  almost  wholly  opposed  and  there  is  seldom  benefit 
in  running  counter  to  our  political  customs.  We  probably  will 
gain  more — the  people  will  feel  more  contented  with  the  system 
if  the  mayor  is  elected  at  a  general  election. 

But  the  mayor  and  the  executive  department  of  city  govern- 
ment represent  merely  one-half  of  the  municipal  problems  before 
us  at  this  time  and  the  serious  fallacy  in  recent  discussions  has 
been  the  utter  failure  of  the  advocates  of  the  Galveston  system 
to  realize  that  a  council  that  will  exercise  the  legislative  func- 
tion is  city  government.  There  is  no  mayor  and  there  is  no 
commission  of  three  or  five  men  that  is  safe  enough  or  sane 
enough  or  broad  enough  to  legislate  for  the  people  of  Des  Moines 
and  then  to  have  the  privilege  and  the  power  to  carry  out  their 
own  ideas  subject  to  all  the  pressure  of  personal  prejudice  and 
pecuniary  temptation.  To  give  such  enormous  power  to  one  body 
is  obnoxious  to  all  that  is  distinctly  American  in  principle  and  in 
practice. 


1/4  COMMISSION   PLAN   OF 

Plain  Talk  (Des  Moines).  February  i6,  1907. 

Commission  System  and  Non-Partizan  Government. 

In  his  address  before  the  Prairie  Club  last  January,  in  which 
he  contended  that  the  Galveston  commission  system  of  city 
government  was  essentially  bad  in  plan  and  would  work  viciously 
in  practice,  Professor  F.  I.  Harriott  of  Drake  University  de- 
clared that  an  alderman  is  not  redeemed  and  sanctified  by  call- 
ing him  a  commissioner.  Further,  he  contended  that  we  do  not 
and  cannot  change  human  nature,  we  cannot  obliterate  greed  and 
abolish  passion  and  prejudice  by  giving  officers  more  power  and 
entrenching  their  powers.  Moreover,  he  asserted  that  the  matter 
in  issue  before  the  people  of  Des  Moines  is  not  a  choice  between 
government  and  bad  government.  We  all  concede  that  our  pres- 
ent system  is  sadly  deficient,  that  its  evils  are  manifest  and  ad- 
mitted by  all  intelligent  citizens,  and  there  is  a  general  and 
vigorous  demand  from  all  parties  that  rigorous  reforms  be  in- 
stituted. The  real  question  is  the  method  by  which  we  shall 
undertake  to  right  matters.  It  is  simply  whether  we  shall  jump 
from  the  frying  pan  into  the  fire.  Neither  place  is  comfortable, 
but  the  fire  is  certainly  not  desirable  or  preferable.  Let  us  see 
if  we  can  attain  the  ideal  under  the  new  reform  we  are  so  loud- 
ly urged  to  adopt. 

The  advocates  of  the  commission  system  seem  to  think  that 
the  new  scheme  will  secure  us  "non-partizan"'  city  government. 
It  may  be  conceded  that  now  and  then  we  may  act  upon  city  af- 
fairs and  elect  aldermen  solely  upon  business  considerations  ap- 
pertaining to  the  city's  welfare.  We  may  do  so  regardless  of  free 
silver  or  the  gold  standard,  regardless  of  Rooseveltism  or  im- 
perialism, regardless  of  standpatism  or  commissionism.  regard- 
less of  Cummins  and  anti-Cummins,  regardless  of  Hull  or  Prouty. 
Now  and  then  we  may  exclude  such  considerations  from  public 
debate  and  local  action  at  the  polls  on  the  city's  government 
and  budget.  But  are  we  likely  to  do  so?  Can  we  rationally 
expect  citizens  to  do  so  with  conditions  as  they  are  and  must  be? 
Our  manufacturer  merchants  are  keenly  interested  in  state 
and  national  policies,  in  the  tariflt.  in  railroad  rates,  in  meat 
inspection.     The  attitude  of  our  legislators  in  state  and  national 


MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  175 

assemblies  is  a  matter  of  vital  concern  to  them.  They  are  the 
same  men  whether  considering  a  tariff  schedule,  or  the  govern- 
ment of  a  railroad,  or  debating  municipal  franchises.  Man  is 
not  a  modern  sea-going  liner  with  separate  water  tight  compart- 
ments with  bulk  heads  separating  each  section.  His  political  acts, 
like  his  interests,  must  of  necessity  run  together  and  interplay, 
one   affecting   and    deterring   the   other. 

The  man  ambitious  to  secure  legislation  or  public  honors  in 
state  or  nation  must  appeal  to  the  same  men  who  run  the  city. 
The  men  who  seek  to  control  city  affairs,  to  determine  its  policy, 
or  secure  its  honors  must  appeal  to  the  same  men  who  man- 
age and  conduct  the  agencies  that  prevail  in  state  and  national 
afYairs. 

Will  public  service  corporations  that  manage  our  city  rail- 
ways, our  telephones  and  telegraphs,  our  water  systems,  our  heat- 
ing and  lighting  plants  cease  to  cover  gain,  cease  to  look  with 
designing  eyes  on  the  city  council,  cease  to  scrutinize  the  or- 
dinances and  care  not  about  the  character  of  the  men  who  will 
enforce  the  regulations  affecting  the  conduct  and  dividends? 
Will  the  men  interested  in  the  sale  of  wine  and  beer  and  the 
people  of  their  saloons,  will  the  keeper  of  dives  and  gamljling 
dens  become  converted  and  join  the  church  and  cease  to  trouble 
our  souls  and  harass  not  the  police  or  surround  them? 

Some  of  the  expectations  of  our  city  reformers  regarding 
non-partizan  government  make  one  think  that  many  of  our  hard- 
headed  business  men  are  suffering  from  softening  of  the  brain 
or  confusion  of  their  minds. 

The  evils  we  complain  of  can  be  reduced  and  curbed,  but  not 
by  the  Galveston  system. 


FACTS  CONCERNING  COMMISSION 
GOVERNMENT 


The  following  data  includes  investigations  up  to  October, 
1910.  With  few  exceptions,  the  information  has  been  secured 
directly  from  the  various  Secretaries  of  State.  In  cases  where  no 
responses  have  been  received  from  that  source,  information, 
where  the  authenticity  is  unquestioned,  has  been  used. 

States  and  Cities  that  have  Provided  for  the  Plan. 


California 

Berkeley 

Los  Angeles 

Riverside 

San  Diego 
Colorado 

Colorado  Springs 

Grand  Junction 
Idaho 

Boise 

Lewiston 
Iowa 

Burlington 

Cedar  Rapids 

Des  Moines 

Fort  Dodge 

Keokuk 

Sioux  City 
Kansas 

Anthony 

Cherryvale 


Cofifeyville 

Emporia 

Hutchinson 

Independence 

Kansas  City 

Leavenworth 

Newton 

Parsons 

Pittsburg 

Topeka 

Wichita 

Massachusetts 

Boston    (Modified) 

Chelsea 

Gloucester 

Haverhill 

Taunton 
Minnesota 

Mankato 
Missouri 

St.  Joseph 


MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT 


New  York 
Buffalo 
Mount  Vernon 

North   Carolina 
Charlotte 

North  Dakota 
Bismarck 
Grand  Forks 
Mandan 
Minot 

Oklahoma 

Ardmore 

Claremore 

El  Reno 

Enid 

Guthrie 

McAlister 

Muskogee 

Sapula 

Tulsa 

South  Carolina 
Columbia 

South    Dakota 
Dell  Rapids 
Huron 
Pierre 
Rapid   City 
Sioux  Falls 


Vermillion 

Yankton 
Tennessee 

Bristol 

Clarksville 

Etowah 

Memphis 

Richard  City 
Texas 

Austin 

Beaumont 

Corpus  Christi 

Dallas 

Denison 

El  Paso 

Forth  Worth 

Galveston 

Greenville 

Houston 

Marshall 

Orange 

Palestine 

San  Antonia 

Sherman 

Waco 
Washington 

Tacoma 
Wisconsin 

Eau  Claire 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  AT  LOS  ANGELES 

THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


m7    1949 

FEB  2  3  1961 


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